There are two more National Basketball Association players who have tested positive for coronavirus. On Tuesday, it was reported that Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets has the disease, and on Wednesday, Malcolm Brogdon of the Indiana Pacers tested positive.
Jokic, the 25-year-old center from Sombor, Serbia, has been a NBA All-Star the last two seasons. He tested positive last week in his native country of Serbia, and was in fact seen with tennis superstar Novak Djokovic in Belgrade according to Brian Windhorst and Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. Djokovic has also tested positive for coronavirus.
In 65 games this season, Jokic is averaging 20.2 points per game, 10.2 rebounds per game, and 6.9 assists per game. Jokic, who has become one of the most dominant centers in the NBA, has a field goal percentage of .528, free throw percentage of .813, and a three-point percentage of .314. The Nuggets have the third best record in the NBA Western Conference at 43 wins and 22 losses.
In 48 games with the Pacers this season, Brogdon is averaging 16.3 points per game, 7.1 assists per game, and 4.7 rebounds per game. He also has a field goal percentage of .439, three point percentage of .313 and free throw percentage of .895. At the time of the coronavirus shutdown, Brogdon was out with a torn left hip. The Pacers are fifth in the Eastern Conference with a record of 39 wins and 26 losses.
Brogdon, a 27-year-old guard is in his first season with the Pacers after playing his first three NBA seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks. The native of Atlanta, Georgia was part of a racial injustice protest in his hometown with Jaylen Brown of the Boston Celtics according to the Associated Press. It is not known at this time if the protest and the coronavirus positive test are related.
There have been 13, 235 cases of coronavirus in Serbia and 263 deaths. There are also 861 active cases. In the American state of Georgia, there have been 69, 381 cases, and 2698 deaths. There are also 61,003 active cases.
