Basketball

Utah Jazz stars Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell have tested positive for coronavirus and the NBA announced on Wednesday it was suspending its season.

Silver said the suspension would last at least a month due to coronavirus, which has killed 4,983 people around the world.

"What we determined today is that this hiatus will be most likely at least 30 days," he told TNT.

"We don't know enough to be more specific than that, but we wanted to give direction to our players and teams and to our fans that this is going to be roughly at least a month."

Silver said there was a possibility the rest of the NBA campaign and the playoffs would be cancelled.

"Of course it's possible," he said.

"I just don't know more at this point."

The NBA suspended the league on Wednesday as COVID-19 continues to wreak havoc on the global sporting calendar.

Latest figures show 3,802 confirmed cases in the United States, with 69 having died from the virus.

Golden State Warriors star Curry posted a video message on Twitter imploring everyone to do their bit to avoid mass gatherings where possible.

"What's up everybody? I know this time is pretty hectic and crazy and there's a lot of uncertainty out there," he said. 

"I just wanna take the time to encourage everyone to practice social distancing to the best of their abilities. I know people are in a lot of different situations and there are different demands from person to person. 

"But as best we can [let's] practice social distancing so we can get rid of the spread of this virus as soon as possible, flatten the curve.

"Make sure you stay six feet away from people, wash your hands when you go inside, outside as much as you can with water and soap and we can all come together collectively to stop the spread of this virus. 

"Everybody [can] do their part. I'm doing mine, I'm at home, me and my family are enjoying family time. 

"But as best you can social distance yourself and we can flatten the curve and get rid of this virus as soon as possible."

Games would take place at the Wide World of Sports complex, a Disney-owned campus that spans 255 acres and features enough space to accommodate practices and lodging.  

NBA spokesperson Mike Bass announced the "exploratory" discussions on Saturday in a statement, noting that the players' union is also part of the conversations.  

"Our priority continues to be the health and safety of all involved," Bass said. "We are working with public health experts and government officials on a comprehensive set of guidelines to ensure that appropriate medical protocols and protections are in place."

Disney is the primary owner of ESPN, one of league's key broadcast partners.  

The NBA has been on indefinite hiatus since March 11, when Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert became the first major figure in American sports to test positive for COVID-19.

After several months off, many players – including all who went abroad during the hiatus – would need to quarantine for 14 days before rejoining their team-mates for a training camp leading up to the resumption of play.  

Players may be recalled to their teams' training facilities as early as June 1, but the NBA may prefer that they report directly to a central location to reduce travel.  

Players who returned to their home countries may also face challenges with local travel restrictions.  

The NBA still has not settled on a format for a return to play, such as the NHL's proposed 24-team playoff bracket.  

It has been reported the NBA would like teams to reach a total of 70 regular season games – about five more for most clubs – to fulfill its contracts with local broadcast affiliates.  

Others have claimed completing the regular season games and following it with a full 16-team postseason would cause too much congestion, potentially pushing the start of 2020-21 well into December.  

The league, like the NHL, has explored the idea of a play-in tournament that would reduce the playoff field to 16 teams without finishing the entire regular season slate.  

The NBA's board of governors is scheduled to have a conference call next Friday to further discuss a return to play.  

The results of Tuesday's COVID-19 tests on 302 players were released on Friday in a joint statement from the league and the National Basketball Players Association.

The statement said: "Any player who has tested positive will remain in self-isolation until he satisfies public health protocols for discontinuing isolation and has been cleared by a physician."

The news comes just over a month before the NBA plans to conclude the 2019-20 regular season and playoffs with a 22-team tournament in Orlando, Florida.

With numbers of new COVID-19 cases rising in the USA, including in the home states of franchises included in the 22-team format, some concern has arisen about the NBA's plan.

Arizona, Texas and Florida have been hit particularly hard in recent weeks.

The league is currently in a testing and transaction window, which allows teams to add free agents before rosters are set on July 1.

Training camps are scheduled to begin on July 9, and the NBA plans on resuming the regular season on July 30.

The decision came after the Oklahoma City Thunder's clash with the Utah Jazz was postponed, just moments before tip-off at Chesapeake Energy Arena.

Rudy Gobert reportedly contracted COVID-19, having been ruled out of the game due to illness along with Jazz team-mate Emmanuel Mudiay.

In a statement, the NBA said: "A player on the Utah Jazz has preliminary tested positive for COVID-19. The test result was reported shortly prior to the tip-off of tonight's game between the Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder at Chesapeake Energy Arena. At that time, tonight's game was cancelled. The affected player was not in the arena.

"The NBA is suspending game play following the conclusion of tonight's schedule of games until further notice. The NBA will use this hiatus to determine next steps for moving forwards in regard to the coronavirus pandemic."

There was chaos in Oklahoma City, where starting line-ups were announced and players braced for tip-off in front of fans before the matchup was suddenly called off midweek.

"Unforeseen circumstances" were cited following a public address inside the arena after officials were seen in conversation before players left the floor.

A Thunder medic reportedly ran onto the court, sparking a discussion with officials.

It comes after the Golden State Warriors announced their game against the Brooklyn Nets would be played behind closed doors on Thursday.

The Warriors' decision followed on from the City and County of San Francisco announcing on Wednesday that any gatherings of 1,000 people or more would be prohibited for two weeks in an attempt to combat the spread of the virus.

As of Wednesday, there have been more than 1,300 cases of coronavirus and 38 deaths in the United States.

Globally, more than 126,000 people have contracted COVID-19 and 4,633 have died.

New York has been hit hard by coronavirus, with more than 3,500 deaths and the number of recorded cases exceeding 113,000.

In collaboration with the Knicks, Nets and Huang, the NBA is moving to help New York's workers.

"The @NBA is contributing 1 million desperately needed surgical masks for New York's essential workers in collaboration with @nyknicks, @BrooklynNets and China's Consul General Huang Ping," governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, wrote on Twitter on Saturday.

"New York thanks you. We are beyond grateful for this gift of critically needed PPE."

The NBA season was suspended last month due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Speaking on Saturday, United States president Donald Trump was unsure about when sport would resume in the country, but said he thinks it will be "sooner rather than later".

The initial deadline was June 3, and the NCAA plans to solidify a new date when the NBA finalises an outline for the 2020 pre-draft process.

The NBA announced on May 1 that it was postponing the draft lottery and combine, both set for May in Chicago. In the past, NCAA athletes had 10 days after the combine to withdraw their name from draft consideration to return to school.

"This modification is being made with the health and wellbeing of our student-athletes in mind, along with their ability to make the most informed decisions during this uncertain time," NCAA senior vice-president of basketball Dave Gavitt said in a statement.

The league has not yet voted on delaying the NBA Draft, set for June 25.

NBA franchise the Nets were heavily criticised on Tuesday after announcing four players – including injured superstar Kevin Durant – contracted COVID-19.

New York City mayor Bill de Blasio took aim at the Nets, insisting "tests should not be for the wealthy, but for the sick" as the world struggles to contain the virus, which has claimed more than 8,900 lives globally.

The Nets responded to the criticism on Wednesday, with their statement reading: "As we learned NBA players on other teams had tested positive for COVID-19, we noticed that several of our players and staff had symptoms.

"Based on this information, and the judgment that all of our players are subject to high exposure due to the close physical nature of basketball, the communal nature of teams and the possibility of an accelerated spread from team to team, our medical experts advised that our players get tested.

"We sourced the tests through a private company and paid for them ourselves because we did not want to impact access to CDC's public resources. Using the test results, we were able to take immediate precautions and strictly isolate the players who tested positive.

"If we had waited for players to exhibit symptoms, they might have continued to pose a risk to their family, friends and the public. Our hope is that by drawing attention to the critical need for testing asymptomatic positive carriers, we can begin to contain the spread and save lives. We believe it is not only the right thing to do for our players and their families, it is the responsible thing to do from a medical and epidemiological standpoint."

US leader Trump was also asked about the issue during his news conference midweek.

Quizzed on whether "the well-connected go to the front of the line" for coronavirus testing, Trump replied: "No, I wouldn't say so. But perhaps that's the story of life. That does happen on occasion, and I've noticed where people have been tested fairly quickly."

The NBA has been on hiatus since Utah Jazz pair Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell tested positive for COVID-19.

The Jazz were scheduled to face the Oklahoma City Thunder before it was postponed on March 11, prompting the suspension of the league.

Oklahoma City, on Wednesday, announced that all players and staffers returned negative results for COVID-19.

"Recognising the stress on the state of Oklahoma's medical system, the Thunder did not use state resources and chose an alternative path for testing of its personnel," the Thunder said in a statement.

Dinwiddie confirmed his diagnosis in an interview with The Athletic and added that he has experienced symptoms related to COVID-19.

Per NBA medical protocols that have been established during the restart plan, he will be put into quarantine for at least 10 days and must pass at least two retests before being permitted to rejoin the Nets.

"Originally, we were supposed to be one of the teams to enter the Orlando bubble early, but training camp got switched back to New York and unfortunately I am now positive," he said. "Given that I have experienced symptoms, including fever and chest tightness, it is unclear on whether or not I'll be able to participate in Orlando."

Dinwiddie had planned on playing when the Nets resume their season July 31 at the Walt Disney World Complex and said he initially tested negative for the virus after returning to New York to take part in workouts.

"I was ready and prepared to rejoin my team-mates as we were to be an early entry team in the resumed season," Dinwiddie said. "I flew private to return to New York, passed multiple COVID-19 tests over my first several days in New York and was able to participate in a couple of practices within the first week."

Prior to the season's stoppage on March 11, Dinwiddie was averaging career highs of 20.6 points and 6.8 assists per game to help the Nets maintain a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference despite injuries to stars Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. Brooklyn enter the restart seventh in the East and six games ahead of the ninth-placed Washington Wizards.

Neither Durant nor Irving are expected to return this season, and ESPN reported on Sunday that veteran forward Wilson Chandler informed the Nets he will not take part in the restart due to health and family reasons.

It is unclear if Dinwiddie is one of the 16 unidentified players the NBA announced last week were positive for COVID-19 during preliminary testing for the season's resumption. Other players who have either revealed they tested positive or reportedly done so include Denver Nuggets All-Star Nikola Jokic, Indiana Pacers guard Malcolm Brogdon, Miami Heat forward Derrick Jones Jr. and three Sacramento Kings – Buddy Hield, Jabari Parker and Alex Len.

The COVID-19 crisis has brought sport to a standstill across the world, while people are struggling financially as various clubs and organisations reduce costs.

There have been over 16,400 coronavirus deaths globally, with more than 540 of those in the United States.

Irving, a 2016 NBA champion and six-time All-Star, used social media on Monday to announce that he is partnering up with Feeding America – a non-profit organisation – and City Harvest in New York City.

"Thank you all for the birthday love, I'm extremely grateful for the support," Irving wrote in an Instagram post. "Seeing the effects of COVID-19 reach our loved ones, our schools, our jobs, and access to food has really impacted me.

"I am excited to partner with @feedingamerica and @lineagelogistics to launch the Share A Meal campaign to help marginalised communities get the food resources they require during this time, and to work with our local partner @cityharvestnyc to distribute 250k meals to my neighbors in need across the NY area. In addition to that I am donating $323k to Feeding America and @lineagelogistics will match $200k of what we raise together. 

"I am asking my fans, friends, family and partners to join me in helping our communities by donating at the link in my bio. Thank you to everyone on the front line working to keep all of us safe, healthy, and fed. Together we can change the world one small gesture at a time."

The NBA has been suspended since March, but the 2019-20 campaign is scheduled to resume at the Disney World complex in Orlando, Florida next month.

Brooklyn are set to return to action against the Orlando Magic on July 31, however, Nets forward Chandler will not be involved.

"As difficult as it will be to not be with my team-mates, the health and wellbeing of my family has to come first," Chandler told ESPN on Sunday.

"Thank you to the Nets organisation for understanding and supporting me in this decision, and I will be watching and rooting for our team in Orlando."

The Nets were seventh in the Eastern Conference with a 30-34 record prior to the COVID-19 crisis.

Chandler, who joined the Nets at the start of the season, had been averaging 5.9 points and 4.1 rebounds per game for Brooklyn in 2019-20.

The season will officially resume on July 30, with the New Orleans Pelicans playing the Utah Jazz and LeBron James' Los Angeles Lakers taking on Kawhi Leonard's Los Angeles Clippers.

Jordan's revelation came hours after team-mate Spencer Dinwiddie told The Athletic he tested positive for COVID-19. The point guard said he has yet to determine whether he will take part in the restart. 

"Found out last night and confirmed again today that I've tested positive for Covid while being back in [the Brooklyn] market. As a result of this, I will not be in Orlando for the resumption of the season," Jordan wrote on Twitter. 

The 31-year-old was a key reserve for the Nets prior to the NBA's suspension of the season in March and leads the team in rebounding at 10.0 per game.  

Dinwiddie, who also said he contracted the virus while working out in New York and added that he has experienced symptoms such as a fever and chest tightness, is averaging career highs of 20.6 points and 6.8 assists per game. His scoring average ranks second among Brooklyn players behind only Kyrie Irving, who underwent season-ending shoulder surgery in early March. 

The Nets also announced during the stoppage that star forward Kevin Durant will not return this season as he continues to rehab a torn Achilles tendon he suffered with the Golden State Warriors during the 2019 NBA Finals. The two-time Finals MVP was also one of four Nets players to test positive for COVID-19 in April, though he has since been declared symptom-free. 

In addition to Durant, Irving, Jordan and possibly Dinwiddie, Brooklyn will be without Wilson Chandler after the veteran forward told ESPN on Sunday he will not play in Orlando due to health and family reasons.

The Nets will enter the resumption holding the number seven seed in the Eastern Conference and are six games ahead of the ninth-placed Washington Wizards.

Teams must follow all appropriate health protocols amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

With the NBA, NHL, MLB and MLS all working on plans to play, Cuomo encouraged sports that can be held without fans in attendance to do so if the economics can be worked out. 

"Do it! Do it!" Cuomo said. "We want you up.

"We want people to be able to watch sports. To the extent people are still staying home, it gives people something to do. It's a return to normalcy. 

"So we are working and encouraging all sports teams to start their training camps as soon as possible. And we'll work with them to make sure that can happen.'' 

New York has been the hardest-hit state in the U.S. with roughly 355,000 reported cases and 29,000 deaths due to COVID-19, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

The NBA, like many sports around the world, has been postponed due to the COVID-19 crisis, which has killed almost 24,000 people globally.

It remains to be seen when and if the 2019-20 season will resume, with commissioner Adam Silver unwilling to provide a return date for the league.

If the campaign relaunches, the prospect of games behind closed doors is likely, something three-time NBA champion James is not looking forward to.

"What is the word 'sport' without 'fan'?" James said on the Road Trippin' Podcast. "There's no excitement. There's no crying. There's no joy. There's no back-and-forth.

"That's what also brings out the competitive side of the players, to know that you're going on the road in a hostile environment and yes, you're playing against that opponent in front of you, but you really want to kick the fans' ass too.

"So to get back on the floor, I would love it. I'm not going to sit here and say nothing. Like, if it's get out there and get back on the floor five-on-five... but like, we can do that in scrimmages.

"Let's just go to each other's practice facility, put out a camera, just scrimmage and livestream it.... I just don't know how we can imagine a sporting event without fans. It's just, it's a weird dynamic."

There has been talk of the NBA heading straight into the playoffs if the season resumes but James, whose Lakers were top of the Western Conference with a 49-14 record prior to the postponement, said: "One thing you can't just do is go straight to the playoffs. Because it discredits the 60-plus games that guys had fighting for that position."

After a difficult first season in Los Angeles, James had returned to his brilliant best for the Lakers – the 35-year-old's performances catapulting him into the mix for a fifth MVP award.

At the time of the NBA suspending the league on March 11, James had been averaging 25.7 points, 10.6 assists and 7.9 rebounds per game.

As such, he is disappointed to lose the rhythm of impressive form he felt was building nicely towards the postseason.

James added: "When you've been building six months of conditioning and preparation and then [it's gone], the narrative that I don't like [is], 'Well, now guys get so much rest' or, like, 'LeBron, he's 35, he's got so many minutes on his body, now he gets so much rest'.

"It's actually the opposite for me because my body, when we stopped playing, was asking me, like, 'What the hell are you doing?'

"My body was like, 'Hey man, what the hell is going on? It's March 13th, you're getting ready for the playoffs, why are you shutting down right now?' And I was right there turning the corner, like, I felt like I was rounding third base, getting ready for the postseason. So the rest factor, I think it's a little bit [overblown]. Especially when you're in the full swing of things."

"Of the 346 players tested for COVID-19 on the NBA campus since test results were last announced on July 13, zero have returned confirmed positive tests," the league said in a statement on Monday.

Last Monday, the league said two players returned positive results out of the 322 samples taken in the first round of tests since players arrived at the bubble the week prior.

The thought process behind creating the bubble at Walt Disney World near Orlando was having players remain inside and not leave to cut down on possible interactions with those on the outside who may have the virus. 

Teams begin scrimmaging on Wednesday, and the season resumes July 30 after being halted on March 11 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The 2019-20 NBA season is set to restart via a 22-team format at the Disney World complex in Orlando, Florida on July 30 after the campaign was halted due to COVID-19 in March.

Embiid's fitness has always been a topic of discussion and all eyes will be on the three-time All-Star center when the NBA returns following the coronavirus pandemic.

Philadelphia will recommence against Eastern Conference rivals the Indiana Pacers, who share identical 39-26 records to be fifth and sixth respectively, on August 1.

And Brown had high praise for Embiid's training and conditioning midweek.

"Let's start with the respect and applause I give him for putting in time. There is nobody on our team that has put in more time than Joel Embiid," Brown told reporters on Wednesday.

"Forget what he has actually done in the gym for a minute, just go to the man hours and consecutive days and the amount of days he has put in over the past few months. I'm proud of him, I respect him. He needed to do it. We understand the impact he can have on our team."

Embiid had been averaging 23.4 points, 11.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game this season.

"We've got a three-week runway to deliver him to the regular season," Brown said. "I'm looking for Joel to come in in as good of shape as he's been in since I have coached him.

"I think the three weeks we have together is an inverted sort of luxury we haven't had. I'm excited for Jo to get back into this and show what he has been doing the last few months."

The 76ers – 14 games behind the Eastern Conference and NBA-leading Milwaukee Bucks (53-12) – are also set to be boosted by the return of fellow All-Star Ben Simmons.

Simmons has been sidelined since February due to a back injury, but Brown added: "He's good to go. He's put in a tremendous amount of work for me to be able to confidently say that.

"As you search for silver linings with this pandemic and the way things have shaped up, it would be hard-pressed for me to find something more obvious than this: It's enabled Ben to reclaim his health. He's good to go, and we look forward to watching him with what I'm told is effectively 100 per cent health."

Jokic remains in his native Serbia having reportedly tested positive for coronavirus as the NBA plans to resume after the 2019-20 season was suspended in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The league is set to return via a 22-team format at the Disney World complex in Orlando, Florida on July 30, with the New Orleans Pelicans, Utah Jazz, Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers in action on the first day back.

Denver are scheduled to resume their campaign against the Miami Heat in the Orlando bubble on August 1 and the Nuggets expect Jokic to return to the United States in time.

"Nikola feels great," Malone told reporters via a Zoom call on Wednesday. "We are working on getting him back here.

"Next Tuesday we depart for Orlando; the hope and expectation is that Nikola Jokic will be with us on that plane.

"From everything that I have heard and talked to him, he feels great, he feels fine and is excited to get back."

Prior to the coronavirus crisis, Jokic was averaging 20.2 points, 10.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists per game for the Nuggets.

The Nuggets were third in the Western Conference with a 43-22 record, behind leaders the Lakers (49-14) and the Clippers (44-20).

Denver, meanwhile, opted to close down their practice facility following COVID-19 cases.

"We have closed down the facility," Malone confirmed. "We felt it was the right thing to do. Today was supposed to be the first day of Phase 3 where all our players were required to be back in the gym and we are allowed to work with them albeit just 1-on-0.

"We have put the safety of our team ahead of this Phase 3. There is a chance we can open the gym up before we leave, depending upon results in the coming days. I am not going to get into who tested but we have had multiple people in our travel party test positive."

Amid the unprecedented situation, Malone feels this season's NBA championship will be the toughest ever contested.

"There has been this ongoing dialogue and conversation that whoever wins it this year, there will be an asterisk by their name and I don't buy that at all," Malone later added.

"If you are able to go into a bubble and be isolated from your friends and family, to have no home-court advantage, to have a league interruption of four months and you are able to spend 90 days and come out of there a champion, I think this will be the toughest championship ever won. There is no asterisk."

The NBA season is set to resume on July 30 after the 2019-20 campaign was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic in March.

Orlando's Disney World complex will host 22 teams, with LeBron James' Lakers headlining the league's comeback against rivals the Los Angeles Clippers on July 30 after the New Orleans Pelicans face the Utah Jazz on the same day.

The Lakers topped the Western Conference with a 49-14 record prior to the COVID-19 crisis.

"I think Orlando itself is going to be as much of a mental test as it is a physical test just because of the extraordinary circumstances there," Pelinka said on a video conference call on Tuesday.

"I think a team like ours, that has such a strong togetherness component, will have an advantage at that part. This team of guys love being together and love playing together. I think that's the significant part of the [first] 63 games."

Pelinka, whose Lakers will be without Avery Bradley after he opted out of the restart, added: "We have put a ton of thought into the mental part of this journey. It is going to be as much as a physical grind as it's going to be a mental grind.

"And I think the mental component might even be more paramount. And so, yes... we have mental wellness people on staff here and we've been working with them on developing a protocol to address some of the concerns that are going to come up from an extended time away from family or an extended time living in a city that's not your home."

The Lakers had gone 8-2 after the All-Star break, with James and team-mate Anthony Davis leading the way for the storied Los Angeles franchise, who have not won a championship since 2010.

"I think that we're in a unique situation where we've had such a strong chemistry, such a strong team chemistry, that I think that platform is going to be seamless in terms of guys jumping on and being part of that identity and chemistry that we already had formed," Pelinka said.

"I don't see that changing at all with the new additions, just because it's such a strong identity."

In his first season with the Pacers after arriving from the Milwaukee Bucks, the 27-year-old is averaging 16.3 points and a team-high 7.1 assists in 48 games. 

"I recently tested positive for the Covid virus and am currently in quarantine," he said in a statement.

"I'm doing well, feeling well and progressing well. I plan to join my team-mates in Orlando for the resumption of the NBA season and playoffs." 

Brogdon was poised to play upon the season's resumption having recovered from leg and hip injuries that sidelined him for Indiana's final three games before the NBA season was halted.

The Pacers (39-26) were in control of the Eastern Conference's fifth seed when the season went on pause on March 11 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

They will be one of the 22 NBA teams set for the restart at the bubble at Walt Disney World in July.

The Pelicans said in a statement that star rookie Williamson, the Pelicans' second-leading scorer at 23.6 points per game, plans to rejoin the team for the restart of the NBA season at a later date but did not offer any specifics. 

'We fully support Zion's decision to leave the NBA campus to be with his family," the Pelicans' vice president of basketball operations David Griffin said. 

"Out of respect for the Williamson family, we will have no further comment at this time."

Whether Williamson will miss any games remains to be determined. Per NBA protocols, he will be required to quarantine between two to four days once he returns to Orlando provided he is tested daily for coronavirus during his time away. Failure to undergo daily testing would require a quarantine period of at least seven days. 

New Orleans are scheduled to return to play July 30 against the Utah Jazz.

The number one overall pick of the 2019 draft missed New Orleans' first 44 games while recovering from arthroscopic surgery on his right knee, but has made a significant impact upon returning from the injury. 

The Pelicans were 17-27 and in 12th place in the Western Conference when Williamson made his delayed debut on January 22 and the team has gone 10-9 with the former Duke standout in the line-up.

New Orleans enter the restart in 10th place in the West, three and a half games behind eighth-place Memphis.