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The Miami Heat and the Boston Celtics were set to take the floor tonight for an Eastern Conference finals rematch in one of tonight's NBA Sunday matchups. However, just hours before the tip, Shams Charania reported that the Miami Heat had a player return with an inconclusive COVID-19 test, reducing the number of available players active to less than the eight-man requirement.
This is already the second game of the season that has been postponed for teams not having eight players due to health and safety protocols—The other game was the Oklahoma City Thunder vs the Houston Rockets on Dec. 24, 2020.
In the latest NBA News, we will break down how COVID-19 is beginning to wreak havoc on the league and may necessitate a mid-season delay.
NBA NEWS: The Boston Celtics and Miami Heat are likely just the beginning
Does the NBA need a COVID-19 reset? For a league that was praised for the way they handled the pandemic to complete the remainder of their 2019-20 NBA season in a bubble, Adam Silver is now facing a serious problem where multiple teams are dealing with COVID-19 breakouts within their roster.
Prior to the postponement to the Celtics and Heat game tonight, Boston was dealing with their own health and safety issues, frantically trying to ensure they have an eight-man roster.
The Boston Celtics were preparing to play without seven players who were out due to Health and safety protocols, including their two stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
The league may begin to find themselves in trouble as COVID-19 continues to meddle with the 2020-21 schedule. In a season that is already ten games shorter, meaning that each game carries more weight in terms of standings, it could be best to delay the season for two weeks allowing players and staff time to get healthy.
This would ensure that the NBA is putting out a quality product and avoid a situation similar to last night when the Philadelphia 76ers played with only seven players or like what we would have seen with the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat tonight.
