NBA reportedly postponing at least two games over Covid
Los Angeles (AFP) – The NBA is postponing at least two games on Sunday, Atlanta at Cleveland and Brooklyn at Denver, amid a rising tide of Covid-19 cases, US media reported.
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On Sunday morning, five Cavaliers players, including center Jarrett Allen, tested positive for Covid-19, ESPN reported. They joined Evan Mobley and Isaac Okoro on the list of players unavailable in Covid protocols.
Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young was also placed in protocols, as was Los Angeles Lakers coach Frank Vogel.
Young was the only Hawks player on the protocols list, coach Nate McMillan told reporters in Atlanta on Sunday.
The Lakers said assistant David Fizdale would be on the sideline in place of Vogel when the Lakers played at the Chicago Bulls later Sunday.
The Bulls were scheduled to be back in action after having two games postponed last week amid a surge of cases in the team. Those were the first games cancelled amid a nationwide coronavirus surge.
The Brooklyn Nets have been hard hit, with a league-high 10 players sidelined over Covid as of Sunday morning.
That included stars Kevin Durant and James Harden along with Kyrie Irving -- who has yet to make his season debut after declining to be vaccinated.
The team said Friday it would change course and allow Irving to play road games. He cannot play in Brooklyn's Barclays Center because of vaccine mandates in New York.
The Nets had the league-minimum eight players available Saturday for their game against Orlando. The Magic, who had nine players in uniform, beat the Eastern Conference leaders 100-93.
The Cavaliers won a sixth straight game on Saturday, beating the reigning champion Milwaukee Bucks who were without star Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bobby Portis and Donte DiVincenzo -- all sidelined over Covid.
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