The WNBA revealed the results of its first round of coronavirus testing.
On Monday, the league announced seven of the 137 players (about 5%) tested had COVID-19 positive results. The tests were administered from June 28 to July 5. Two of those players are reportedly from the Indiana Fever, according to Power Plays writer Lindsay Gibbs.
Each player, not being named by the league, "will remain in self-isolation until she satisfies public health protocols for discontinuing isolation and has been cleared by a physician," the league said.
There's much not solidified about the coming WNBA season restart, but the league confirmed that the other 11 teams would be traveling to the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. Monday to begin work on the bubble season. The only team delaying its arrival to Florida are the Fever, who will all self-isolate "in an abundance of caution due to the CDC's close contact self-quarantine requirements," the league said.
Among Liberty players presumed to be making the trip include veterans Kia Nurse, Amanda Zahui B, Layshia Clarendon and Kiah Stokes and rookies Leaonna Odom, Jazmine Jones, Kylee Shook and Jocelyn Willoughby. The team, along with the 11 others in the league, have not officially confirmed which players will be participating in the bubble season yet.
Liberty players already confirmed not to be in attendance include Rebecca Allen, who opted to forgo the bubble season because of the coronavirus and will remain with her family in Australia. Marine Johannes and Han Xu pulled out of the season well before the Florida plan was in the works. Johannes decided to stay with her family in France for personal reasons. Xu stayed in China to carry out the rest of the Chinese Basketball League, whose season was also adjusted due to the coronavirus.
When plans were announced to restart the season at the IMG Academy back on June 15, there was still much speculation among players, coaches and staff about health and safety. Players weren't even notified of the full plans until about two days before the league determined they needed to make a decision on whether they would participate in the season, according to ESPN.
"One franchise representative told ESPN that there was not enough support staff to adequately meet the players' needs and provide them the best chance to stay healthy and perform at peak level throughout the season," Mechelle Voepel reported on June 25.
Many other stars around the league have since announced their decision to opt out of the bubble plan via social media, citing health and/or social unrest concerns, including: Mystics' Natasha Cloud and LaToya Sanders, Dream's Tiffany Hayes and Renee Montgomery, Sun's Jonquel Jones and Sparks' Chiney Ogwumike and Kristi Toliver.
The most recent WNBA star to withdraw from the season was the Aces' Liz Cambage. The team announced Cambage's decision not to participate over the weekend.
"Liz is a generational talent, and we are going to miss her this year on the court and in the locker room," Aces GM Dan Padover said in a statement Saturday. "She has been incredibly active this offseason in the community raising money for first responders who battled the brush fires in Australia, shining a light on mental health awareness, and standing at the forefront of the peaceful protests in her country battling social and racial inequality, and I have no doubt that she will continue to do so.
"Although Liz won't be with us in Florida, she has our full support, and will continue to be a part of the Aces family and the city of Las Vegas for many years to come."
Also over the weekend, Chicago Sky assistant coach Bridget Pettis decided to quit working in the league altogether, citing the current health crisis and social unrest in the country.
"I asked a lot of questions that not too many people were happy about. I discovered that some medical staff of teams not only believe it's not safe, but also the women don't have enough resources as they believe we should unlike the NBA going into this bubble," Pettis said according to a press release by food and nutrition nonprofit Project Roots AZ, an organization Pettis founded and plans to focus more on. "If the WNBA cannot upgrade the situation even more with safety I feel the WNBA should wait and play the following season. Why put ourselves and players in Florida as cases increase?"
The season is expected to begin later this month and continue until October, though official dates and a schedule have yet to be released.
