An apparent positive COVID-19 test result for rookie forward KJ Martin Jr. could cause the Houston Rockets to be without several players in Wednesday night’s regular-season opener due to contact tracing.
Per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Tim MacMahon, veteran guard John Wall, center DeMarcus Cousins, and rookie forward Jae’Sean Tate were deemed to be close contacts of Martin after getting haircuts together. As of Wednesday afternoon, the Rockets were doing a second round of testing on Martin to confirm the initial result.
Houston was already without reserve guard Ben McLemore due to a separate positive test result, and they could potentially be missing All-Star guard James Harden due to a reported protocol breach. The Rockets entered Wednesday with 15 healthy players on their roster, but if Harden isn’t allowed by the NBA to play, they could be without six members of their expected team (McLemore, Martin, Harden, Wall, Cousins, Tate). That would leave the Rockets with just nine available players, which would be just about the minimum requirement of eight active players.
There was a group of Houston players — including Martin, John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins — away from the facility at an apartment getting haircuts, sources said. That's led to the contact tracing on Wall and Cousins as team awaits more testing results on Martin, sources said.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) December 23, 2020
If Martin’s test result is confirmed, the Rockets aren’t far from a point at which the opening game could be in jeopardy due to a lack of players. While both Wall and Cousins tested negative for COVID-19, per Woj. they may still be ineligible to play for several days under the league’s new safety protocols due to the potential incubation period of the virus.
As of early Wednesday afternoon, neither the team nor the league had issued a public statement on the ongoing situation. Tipoff is currently scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Central from Toyota Center.
Promising rookie forward Jae’Sean Tate is among the group of Rockets sent home due to contact tracing, per source. https://t.co/BEdU3HNrEG
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) December 23, 2020
