The Boston Celtics got a bit of brutal news on Saturday afternoon as word dropped that star forward Jayson Tatum will miss up to two weeks due to the league’s COVID-19 protocols. It is unclear if Tatum tested positive or was just a close contact, but regardless, he is now set to quarantine for the next 10-14 days.
The news of Tatum getting sidelined did not just impact the Celtics, however. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Washington Wizards star and league-leading scorer Bradley Beal will miss the team’s game on Saturday night against the Miami Heat following exposure to Tatum.
Wizards star Bradley Beal is out for tonight vs. Miami due to health and safety protocols and contact tracing exposure to Jayson Tatum, sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) January 9, 2021
Beal and the Wizards played the Celtics on Friday, falling 116-107. Charania added the reason why in a subsequent tweet: After the game, Beal and Tatum, both of whom are natives of St. Louis and attended the same high school several years apart, spent time on the floor speaking to one another. It was determined that Beal was close enough to Tatum that this was cause for concern.
This is part of health and safety protocols investigating potential exposure that occurred when Bradley Beal and Jayson Tatum were speaking in close proximity on the court postgame Friday night, sources said. https://t.co/42fYb8Yesc
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) January 9, 2021
The news of Beal being out is the latest in what has been a brutal week for the NBA with regards to its ability to put on a season amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Earlier in the day, a mix of normal injuries and COVID-19 protocols led to the Philadelphia 76ers only having eight players — the minimum required to play a game‚ in a loss to the Denver Nuggets, which was without young standout Michael Porter Jr. due to his need to quarantine after exposure.
