NBA suspends season after All-Star tests positive for coronavirus, officials say
The NBA announced that a Utah Jazz player has tested positive for coronavirus and the league is suspending the season “until further notice,” beginning after Wednesday night’s games.
Wednesday’s game between the Jazz and the Oklahoma City Thunder was suddenly canceled just before tip-off, after the test result was reported, according to an NBA news release.
“The NBA will use this hiatus to determine next steps for moving forward in regard to the coronavirus pandemic,” the release read.
The Athletic’s Shams Charania and ESPN reported that Jazz All-Star Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19.
The game was being played at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City. Players from both teams were being kept in their locker rooms after the cancellation was announced, according to ESPN.
The Jazz had tweeted earlier in the day that Gobert had been ruled out of the game because of illness.
During an interview of the Dallas Mavericks and Denver Nuggets game on ESPN Wednesday night, Mavs’ owner Mark Cuban said the news of the events in Oklahoma City was “stunning.”
Earlier Wednesday, the NCAA said fans would not be allowed to attend its March Madness basketball games.
