The Philadelphia 76ers’ game against the Denver Nuggets will be played as scheduled on Saturday, sources tell ESPN, after several Sixers players participated in the tracing of contacts.
The 76ers are expected to have nine eligible players for Saturday’s game, including three cleared from protocol: Joel Embiid, Danny Green and Paul Reed, sources tell ESPN.
The health and safety protocol approval does not guarantee that Embiid will play Saturday, only that he will count as an eligible player for the eight Philadelphia needs to avoid delay.
Several Sixers – including Tobias Harris, Matisse Thybulle, Shake Milton and Vincent Poirier – remain in health and safety protocols and will remain in quarantine indefinitely, sources said.
Saturday afternoon’s game had a chance to delay the second coronavirus-related game of the NBA season, due to the shared proximity of about 76ers players to guard Seth Curry, who tested positive for COVID-19, sources told ESPN .
The Sixers also had a positive test from an employee on Friday, a source told ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne.
Denver has its own COVID-19 numbers. The Nuggets flew to Philadelphia on Friday without the talented young attacker Michael Porter Jr., who is still indefinitely sidelined under health and safety protocols, sources said.