Toronto had to play its last game without its coach or five assistants due to coronavirus health and safety protocols within the team. It was going to have to play through the All-Star break without Pascal Siakam for the same reason.
Now the NBA has postponed one of those Toronto games: Sunday night against Chicago. The postponement came “because of positive test results and ongoing contact tracing within the Raptors, the team will not have the league-required eight available players to proceed,” the league said in postponing the game.
This is the 30th NBA game postponed due to COVID-19 protocols (another four were delayed due to weather concerns).
It is unclear if Toronto’s other games before the All-Star break — Tuesday hosting Detroit or Thursday at Boston — will be played. The Raptors played the Houston Rockets without those coaches and a couple of players (including Siakam), so far no Rockets games have been postponed because of it.
The NBA has released its second-half schedule, which was already compacted to get every team to 72 games. Now the league will be tested to find a way to play this (and any other) postponed game. Not all teams may get in the full 72, but with the Raptors and Bulls both in the mix for playoff/play-in spots in the East, this game could matter in the standings at the end of the season.