Brooklyn Nets player Kevin Durant publicly revealed Tuesday that he tested positive for coronavirus, an acknowledgment that coincides with a statement from the team that four players had tested positive.
In an interview with The Athletic, Durant revealed that he doesn’t have symptoms and wants to encourage everyone to remain positive: “Everyone be careful, take care of yourself and quarantine. We’re going to get through this.”
The NBA released a statement from the Brooklyn Nets acknowledging that the players who tested positive were under quarantine and being monitored by team doctors, and that only one of the players is showing symptoms of the virus.
“All players and members of the Nets travel party are being asked to remain isolated, closely monitor their health and maintain constant communication with team medical staff,”the Brooklyn Nets said in a statement Tuesday.
“The health of our players and staff is of the highest priority to the organization, and the team is doing everything within its power to ensure that those affected receive the best care possible,” said the team. “As always, we appreciate the support of our fans, partners and surrounding community, and we wish all those who are battling this virus a speedy recovery.”
According to CBS Sports, the entire basketball team was tested for coronavirus after traveling home to New York from San Francisco. While the team has stated they paid for the tests out-of-pocket using a private company, the decision to test the entire team — regardless of symptoms — has drawn backlash from New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.
“We wish them a speedy recovery. But, with all due respect, an entire NBA team should NOT get tested for COVID-19 while there are critically ill patients waiting to be tested,” said de Blasio. “Tests should not be for the wealthy, but for the sick.”
We wish them a speedy recovery. But, with all due respect, an entire NBA team should NOT get tested for COVID-19 while there are critically ill patients waiting to be tested.
Tests should not be for the wealthy, but for the sick. https://t.co/7uQlL3zc7Z
— Mayor Bill de Blasio (@NYCMayor) March 17, 2020
While coronavirus testing has been largely unavailable in the United States, Assistant Secretary for Health Brett Giroir told White House reporters Tuesday that testing capacity within the country has been accelerating, reports the news agency.
“The commercial system is rapidly advancing its testing capabilities,” Giroir said. “As of today our public health laboratories, meaning the CDC and the public health labs, have reported out 31,878 tests so almost 32,000 tests. The clinical laboratories, the Association of Clinical Laboratories, have reported out about 27,000 tests.”
According to The New York Times, there have 5,881 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the United States, and approximately 107 people who tested positive for the virus have died as of Wednesday morning. Over 2,200 of the confirmed coronavirus cases in the country have been diagnosed in the last five days, reports the news agency.