A total of 48 NBA players tested positive for COVID-19 between Nov. 24 and Nov. 30 out of a pool of 546 tested players according to an announcement made by the NBA Wednesday regarding players returning to their home markets and teams.
The 8.8% positivity rate is high, but such test results for the virus were expected by the league according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania.
As players make their way back from their homes after the short offseason for training camp, a similar situation as to what occurred at the end of the NBA’s near-four month hiatus seems to be playing out.
Everyone across NBA expected a number of positive tests because players are reentering their markets and restarting the league’s cohesive health/safety protocols. This is part of the process and similar to when players were tested in-market prior to the July restart in Orlando. https://t.co/kRm5X9avQQ
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 2, 2020
“This is part of the process and similar to when players were tested in-market prior to the July restart in Orlando,” tweeted Charania.
The testing regime in the restart at Disney’s Wide World of Sports complex saw 25 of 354 tested players — 7.04% — test positive, so while the uptick is concerning, it is a comparable situation to what the league faced ahead of the bubble.
Still, it is important to stress that the coming season will not be held in that sort of environment.
Meaning individual player behavior and the health guidelines hammered out by the league and the Players Association will be critical in keeping the season moving forward safely.
