Unfortunately, since Rudy Gobert, a jazz center in Utah, tested positive for COVID-19 on March 11, which led to the interruption of the NBA season, dozens of players have also been infected with the virus. Fortunately, none of them got seriously ill, but some, including Spencer Dinwiddie and Taurean Prince, had to withdraw from the league’s plan to continue the season at Disney World later this month.
Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic was another who tested positive for the corona virus, but he will be able to play after returning several negative tests, both in his home country of Serbia, where he was infected, and back in Denver. Although it’s great news that Jokic has been cleared up, the timing of the tests meant that, according to ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk, he was unable to join the nuggets on their flight to Orlando:
The Nuggets left Denver for Orlando on Tuesday, but the team couldn’t confirm who was on the team flight.
A source said Jokic is healthy. However, the center had to run two negative coronavirus tests in Serbia before traveling to the United States. And then he had to do two more negative tests before flying the team to Orlando. A source said the timing of everything made it difficult and too tight for Jokic before the team left on Tuesday.
Jokic was tested positive for COVID-19 in June, just a few days after he was with tennis star Novak Djokovic, who also tested positive. The fact that Jokic is already healthy is primarily fantastic news, just for him and his family. This virus is extremely unpredictable and there are no guarantees even in healthy people like Jokic.
This is of course the main priority, but from the perspective of basketball, too, it is enormous for the nuggets. They are in third place in the loaded Western Conference between 43 and 22 and must use Jokic at a high level if they want to improve the playoff outcome of the second round of last season.
How Jokic will fare after the game starts is obviously to be seen, not only because of his torture with the virus and the strange circumstances of this bladder, but also because he lost a lot of weight during quarantine – so much that he apparently has, according to Nuggets -President Tim Connelly’s abs now.
Having abdominal muscles is never bad, but it will be interesting to see how Jokic does with a smaller frame. He’s always been a guy who used his mass to throw enemies around and make room, and he may not be able to do the same to the same extent.
