Giannis Antetokounmpo: Milwaukee Bucks forward enters Covid-19 protocols as ‘Booster Day’ nears | NBA News
Giannis Antetokounmpo is the latest NBA star to be sidelined by Covid-19.
The league’s injury report on Tuesday night listed the two-time MVP as out for the Milwaukee Bucks’ game against the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday because he is in the health and safety protocols.
Milwaukee’s Wesley Matthews and Donte DiVincenzo also have entered the Covid-19 protocols and won’t play Wednesday.
Antetokounmpo played on Sunday at New York and on Monday at Boston. He had a triple-double in the victory over the Knicks and scored 20 points in the loss to the Celtics.
He is averaging 27 points, 11.6 rebounds and 5.8 assists this season.
Earlier this season, Bucks forward Khris Middleton missed eight games after testing positive for Covid-19. Last season, Milwaukee’s Jrue Holiday missed 10 games for the same reason.
The Bucks went 3-5 in the games Middleton missed after his positive test. Middleton is questionable for Wednesday’s game after leaving the Celtics game early with a hyperextended left knee.
Coronavirus has disrupted the day-to-day operations of the NBA, with Chicago Bulls shut down for what will be at least a few days with 10 players in health and safety protocols.
But the impact is not limited to Chicago. The Brooklyn Nets were missing seven players for their home game on Tuesday against Toronto and the Los Angeles Lakers cancelled practice with Dwight Howard and Malik Monk in the protocols.
In recent days, Indiana coach Rick Carlislie has missed games and Raptors President Masai Ujiri tested positive after hosting an event that NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum attended, which forced them to undergo daily testing since. It’s not just players and executives, either, but officials and broadcast teams, too.
This all underscores what NBA officials have been saying for weeks – the pandemic is still very much a problem and that’s why Friday is such a priority. Friday is Booster Day, when the league’s most important percentage won’t be of the 3-point variety.
The current data from the NBA indicates more than 60 per cent of players have gotten their booster shots. Under the new guidelines, that potentially means somewhere around 150 players would now be subject to daily testing again.
The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association have been urging players and staff to get their coronavirus booster shot for the past several weeks. On Friday, the latest league guidelines will be implemented.
One provision of the new guidelines states that a team staffer who doesn’t have their booster shot by Friday – with limited exceptions – will no longer have the ability to have in-person access with players, coaches and referees. Plus, the staffer will be banned from joining their clubs on road trips.
As for the players who haven’t received their booster, they will be subject to game-day testing again, and the league will reserve the right to impose additional testing on their respective teams as needed going forward.
