Coronavirus update: Kevin Durant, 3 other Brooklyn Nets test positive

The Brooklyn Nets have announced that four players have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, only one of whom is currently showing symptoms. It is being reported that Kevin Durant is one of the four.

The Brooklyn Nets have issued a press release saying four of their players have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, a report that was quickly supported by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Per the press release: “Four Brooklyn Nets players have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus. Of the four players, one player is exhibiting symptoms while three are asymptomatic. All four players are presently isolated and under the care of team physicians.”

According to the press release, the team is also working to identify people who may have been exposed, including team staff and opposing players.

According to The Athletic‘s Shams Charania, Kevin Durant is one of the four players who tested positive. The two-time NBA Finals MVP has not had any symptoms, but is urging people to stay quarantined.

The other three players, as yet unidentified, join the three other previously identified players who have tested positive — Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell of the Utah Jazz and Christian Wood of the Detroit Pistons. The Pistons and Jazz had played each other in the days leading up to Gobert’s positive test result and it was assumed that one had infected the other. The Nets have not played the Pistons or Jazz recently, which means we’re looking at another pathway by which the virus has entered the NBA population.

The NBA season is currently suspended, a decision that is due to be re-evaluated after 30 days. However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have issued new guidelines recommending against gatherings of more than 50 people for at least eight weeks. That makes it unlikely the NBA could resume play before mid-June at the earliest.

To date, more than 180,000 cases (and 7,00 deaths) have been confirmed in more than 160 countries worldwide, including the United States, which has seen more than 4,000 affected Americans and 75 deaths. The World Health Organization officially declared the outbreak a pandemic on March 9 and countries have implemented curfews, travel bans and mandatory quarantines to help prevent its spread.

For more information about COVID-19, visit the CDC’s website or the website for your state’s Department of Health.