The NBA delayed the next three games of the San Antonio Spurs after four team players tested positive for COVID-19, the league announced on Tuesday.
The Charlotte Hornets, who played against the Spurs on Sunday, are undergoing contact tracking and their next two games will be postponed, the NBA said.
The Spurs have been quarantined in Charlotte since Sunday’s game, ESPN sources told Adrian Wojnarowski.
The affected Spurs games were scheduled for Wednesday in Cleveland against the Cavaliers, Saturday in New York against the Knicks and next Monday at the home of the Indiana Pacers.
The Hornets’ games affected were scheduled for Wednesday against the Chicago Bulls and Friday against the Denver Nuggets.
Charlotte’s next possible game is now at home against the Golden State Warriors on Saturday, in what would be Stephen Curry’s annual return to North Carolina, where he grew up.
The postponement announced on Tuesday pushes the total number of games postponed this season to 29 due to positive tests or contact tracking issues, including Spurs’ game in Detroit against the Pistons to be played on Tuesday-evening. The NBA canceled that game on Monday.
Detroit now plays against Chicago on Wednesday and Denver will play against Cleveland on Friday, according to the NBA. Both games were originally intended for the second half of the season. The NBA has said it will shake up some games, if possible, to accommodate the need to reschedule games in the second half of the season.
The NBA does not disclose which players tested positive, but the latest postponement announcement said the Spurs had positive tests among players and did not name the coaches. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich announced last month, on his 72nd birthday, that he has been given the vaccine that protects against the effects of COVID-19.
Spurs didn’t have point guard Quinndary Weatherspoon for their Sunday game against Charlotte because of the competition’s COVID-19 protocols; Weatherspoon played 10 minutes in Atlanta against the Hawks on Friday, then was picked by protocols over the weekend.
Being excluded due to protocols can suggest a number of things, including a positive test, a suspicious positive test, or contact information showing that a gamer may have been exposed to a person with COVID-19.