Just days after Utah Jazz players Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell tested positive for the coronavirus, it was reported Tuesday afternoon that Kevin Durant and three other players on the Brooklyn Nets had also been diagnosed.
NBA Insider Shams Charania broke the news and said that Durant wasn't showing any symptoms and was feeling normal. His message to the public was simple: "Everyone be careful, take care of yourself and quarantine. We're going to get through this."
https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status/1240028679226482694
Details about the other affected players weren't made available. All the players on the team have been asked to remain isolated.
It's not clear how Durant was exposed, but we know it didn't happen during a game as the 31-year-old forward has been out all season recovering from a torn Achilles tendon.
Durant's case is similar to Mitchell's as neither one has shown symptoms, like a fever or cough. Mitchell recently joined Good Morning America to chat about what's going on. “I have no symptoms which is a unique – when people ask me I would say if you were to tell me I could play in a seven-game series tomorrow, I would be ready to lace up,” he said.
Soon after KD's diagnosis, several Twitter users recalled that he was with Drake last week in Los Angeles when the Nets played the Lakers. It was the last game for both teams before the NBA season was suspended.
Since the 'rona can lie in someone's system for up to two weeks without any symptoms, there was immediate chatter about whether Drake may have contracted the virus. 😳
https://twitter.com/OnlyHipHopFacts/status/1240040668317302784
https://twitter.com/BillyReinhardt/status/1240028601904508928
The Lakers announced on Tuesday that staff and players would be tested as a precaution.
A couple of weeks before Drake was spotted kicking it with KD, the Phoenix Suns' Devin Booker made a brief cameo in his video for "Chicago Freestyle." The two were likely hanging out in Chicago during All-Star Weekend, before the coronavirus was causing serious issues in the U.S.
Wishing Durant and all the other affected NBA players a speedy recovery, and we hope our dude Drizzy stays up. 👌