The Houston Rockets’ Russell Westbrook, one of the most talented players in the NBA, has tested positive for Covid-19 and is in quarantine.
The 31-year-old said he received the results of the test before the Rockets left for Orlando, Florida, where the NBA season is due to resume later this month in a “basketball bubble” at Disney World. Westbrook said he is “feeling well” and is “looking forward to rejoining my teammates when I am cleared”. He added: “please take this virus seriously”.
— Russell Westbrook (@russwest44) July 13, 2020
Westbrook’s teammates James Harden and Luc Mbah a Moute have also not yet joined the Rockets in Orlando. Houston coach Mike D’Antoni said he hoped the players would join the team soon. No reason has been given for the players’ absence. “These are things that people are dealing with,” D’Antoni said.
Around 25 NBA players have tested positive for the virus since the process began at the end of June. “Any player, coach or team staff member who tested positive will remain in self-isolation until they satisfy public health protocols for discontinuing isolation and have been cleared by a physician,” the league said in a statement earlier this month.
Westbrook is a nine-time All-Star and was voted the league’s MVP in 2017, the same year he became only the second player to average a triple-double over the course of a season.
