At least 54 NBA players – and almost certainly, more – have been diagnosed with coronavirus.
None in the bubble at Disney World, though.
NBA:
One player reportedly tested positive in the bubble. But that appeared to be a false positive, as he previously recovered from coronavirus and tested negative several times.
This is great news for the NBA.
Though the number of positive tests in the leadup to teams arriving at Disney World provided a lot of shock value, that’s a reflection of a greater world plagued by coronavirus. The league can’t control that. In a campus run by the NBA – which includes quarantine upon arrival and frequent testing – coronavirus appears non-existent.
But dangers remain:
- Players are still arriving, and that’s a high-risk time. A player could contract coronavirus just before arriving (maybe even en route), test negative for a few days, get cleared to exit quarantine then spread coronavirus within the bubble. (It’s encouraging that only two players made it as far as in-hotel quarantining before their coronavirus was detected.)
- People could sneak into the bubble.
- Workers, who aren’t tested as frequently but are supposed to remain distanced from players, could get too close.
- Families arriving will re-raise all the arrival concerns – though with the added temptation of players and families sneaking to see each other before families’ quarantines end.
If coronavirus infiltrates the bubble, luck will factor significantly into how far it spreads.
But, if everything works perfectly, the bubble will remain coronavirus-free. So far, that’s still on the table.