Heat’s Derrick Jones Jr. tests positive for COVID-19, according to source
Miami Heat forward Derrick Jones Jr. tested positive for COVID-19, a league source told the Miami Herald.
Jones, 23, has been asymptomatic and still expects to participate in the resumption of the 2019-20 NBA season at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, according to a source familiar with the situation. He was tested Tuesday, when mandatory COVID-19 testing for NBA players and staff began to be issued on a regular basis.
According to two people who have been in contact with the Heat, Jones was the only Heat player to have tested positive for COVID-19 as of midday Thursday. But that is subject to change because tests are ongoing.
One Heat staffer also tested positive for the virus, according to a source. The Heat, like many organizations, is not saying how many players or employees have tested positive.
Meanwhile, the Heat has stopped player workouts at its AmericanAirlines Arena practice facility until Monday; those workouts had been ongoing several days a week. Players will come to the arena only for testing, which is required for each player every other day.
With NBA teams still limited to voluntary individual workouts, Jones is now required to rest and refrain from exercise training for two weeks from the later of the date of his first COVID-19 test and/or resolution of viral symptoms, according to the NBA’s 113-page health and safety manual sent to teams last week.
Jones must also self-isolate until he returns at least two consecutive negative tests more than 24 hours apart and then needs to receive medical clearance before undergoing a cardiac screening.
The Heat is two weeks away from its scheduled July 8 bus trip to the Gran Destino Tower at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort, when it will enter the NBA’s quarantine bubble. The two-week recovery timeline could allow Jones to be available for the start of training camp at Disney — when group workouts will again be permitted for the first time in months — in the second week of July if he does not experience any setbacks.
According to the NBA, travel to Disney will only be allowed for “individuals who (i) have not returned a positive PCR [COVID-19] test result since the commencement of the league-wide testing program, or previously returned a positive PCR test result, but have satisfied the criteria for discontinuation of isolation ... (ii) report no symptoms associated with COVID-19 on the day of travel; and (iii) do not live with a household member who has or recently had COVID-19 or symptoms.” For individuals who don’t meet this criteria, the team will arrange for travel to Disney when they are cleared and it is approved by the NBA.
Jones, an impending unrestricted free agent who is on the verge of the first sizable contract of his NBA career, has not wavered in his intention to participate in the restart despite what’s perceived by some as a heightened injury risk because of the unique circumstances following a four-month break from game action. But the positive COVID-19 test would allow Jones to opt out of the restart and still be paid the remainder of his 2019-20 salary.
He’s in the final season of a two-year, $3.2 million deal he signed in 2018.
“I just focus on the task at hand,” Jones said to the Miami Herald last week. “My task at hand is to make the playoffs this season, and we did it. My next task is to make it as far as we can in the playoffs and try to contend for a title. That’s what I got on my mind right now, and that’s what I’m thinking about right now. When that time comes for free agency, that’s honestly when I’m probably going to think about it.”
Jones, who won the Slam Dunk Contest during All-Star Weekend in February, has averaged career highs in points (8.9), rebounds (4.2), assists (1.1), steals (1.1) and minutes (24.5) in 51 games (15 starts) this season.
Teams are able to sign substitute players from July 1 until Aug. 14 to replace a player who notifies his team that he has elected to sit out the resumption of the season, is an excused or protected player because he’s considered high risk or tests positive for COVID-19. Even with the Heat at the league maximum of 17 players on its roster, it will be able to exceed that total to add a substitute player.
Any player replaced on a team’s eligible roster would be ineligible to participate in the remainder of the 2019-20 season. But with Jones still planning to take part in the restart, a substitute player is not expected to be necessary at this point.
The NBA season was suspended on March 11, on the night that Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19. His teammate, All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell, also subsequently tested positive.
Among other NBA players who have reportedly tested positive for COVID-19: Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, Indiana Pacers guard Malcolm Brogdon, Detroit Pistons forward Christian Wood, Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart, and Sacramento Kings guard Buddy Hield, center Alex Len and forward Jabari Parker.
Every NBA player who is publicly known to have tested positive reportedly has made a full recovery.
The NBA’s restart plan calls for 22 teams to finish their seasons at a fanless quarantine-type environment just outside of Orlando at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. The season is set to resume on July 30 and end in October.
The postseason is set to begin on Aug. 17 following eight “seeding games;” the league is expected to announce the schedule in the next few days. The Heat has already clinched a playoff spot.
This story was originally published June 25, 2020 at 9:15 AM.
