According to reporting from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Milwaukee Bucks have closed their practice facility after the team received results of recent round of COVID-19 tests.
The NBA testing protocol heading into the resuming of the season in Orlando is spread over six phases.
From Tim Bontemps of ESPN:
- Phase 1, which goes from now through Monday, includes deadlines for players to report to their home cities: June 15 for players returning from overseas and June 22 for players returning from other places in the U.S. This does not apply to the Toronto Raptors, who are going to convene at Florida Gulf Coast University in Naples, Florida. Anyone who traveled to Florida from Toronto would have been subject to a 14-day self-quarantine period before being able to begin team activities.
- Phase 2, which starts June 23, will have players being tested every other day, as well as the two days prior to when teams are scheduled to leave for Florida. Players’ first test will be both a test for COVID-19 done via a shallow nasal swab and oral swab and an antibody test done via a blood draw. The COVID-19 test will be repeated every other day, and the antibody test will be repeated only if a player tests positive.
- During Phase 3, which will be July 1-11, players will begin mandatory individual workouts at team facilities. Group workouts will remain prohibited, though the number of players allowed in a facility at one time will increase from four to eight. Head coaches will be allowed to participate in and watch individual workouts.
- Phase 4 was split into two parts: July 7-11, which includes the teams’ travel to Walt Disney World and the period afterward when they will be quarantined, and July 9-21, which covers the practice time teams will have once players and staff complete their quarantine period.
During the first part, for a player to be allowed to travel to Florida with his team:
- He must have not tested positive for COVID-19 since league-wide testing began.
- If he tested positive, he must have satisfied the criteria for the discontinuation of quarantine.
- He must not have lived with anyone who has recently tested positive or exhibited symptoms associated with COVID-19.
- During Phase 5 (July 22-29), teams will play three scrimmages against other teams in the same hotel.
- Phase 6 covers the time teams will be playing in seeding and playoff games. Once teams are eliminated, players will be required to pass a COVID-19 test within 24 hours of their scheduled departures.
The Bucks were not the only team to close facilities. On June 30 the Nuggets were closing facilities after two members of their Orlando travelling party tested positive for the virus. The Five Reason Sports Network’s Ethan J, Skolick reported the Miami Heat were also following a similar course of action after they had someone test positive. Wojnarowski also reported the temporary shut down of their practice facility after Brooklyn Nets players DeAndre Jordan and Spencer Dinwiddie confirmed their positive tests.
