Rockets swingman Danuel House is the first player ejected from the NBA bubble.
"House had a guest in his hotel room over multiple hours on Sept. 8 who was not authorized to be on campus," the league said in a statement Friday evening. House is leaving the bubble and not coming back.
House had sat out the Rockets' last two losses to the Lakers this week while the league investigated him and teammate Tyson Chandler, who was later cleared. The guest was a woman who worked in the bubble as a coronavirus tester, according to multiple reports.
Players aren't supposed to have any guests, even teammates, in their bubble hotel rooms. The NBA busted House based on "door data," presumably meaning House's door opening and closing. The woman, who like the rest of the virus testers does not live on campus, entered the Rockets' hotel on Monday night and left hours later.
The Rockets, who are the only team staying in their hotel, trail the Lakers 3-1 in the West semifinals. House is the Rockets' sixth man. "He plays 30 minutes a game on our team. When you're missing somebody that (plays) that much game time for your team, it's tough," PJ Tucker said Friday.
