Make that three-games-in-a-row now that the Brooklyn Nets have had postponed.
The NBA announced on Wednesday morning that their game against the Portland Trail Blazers scheduled to take place on Thursday had been postponed. The Nets do not have the league-required eight available players to proceed with the game, the NBA said in a press release.
The league had already made the call to postpone two of Brooklyn’s earlier games this past week on Sunday and Tuesday as they continue to deal with COVID-19. The Nets have 10 players in health and safety protocol, which is the most among any team currently in the NBA.
That means the Nets’ first game back on the court would be Christmas Day when they’re slated to play the Los Angeles Lakers in front of a nationally- televised audience. The Christmas Day matchups have become a premier event for the NBA, similar to football on Thanksgiving, and the league has made it no secret that they are trying to make sure those games are played.
On Tuesday, it was reported that the NBA had created contingency plans for Christmas Day in the event a game was forced to be postponed. The league is aiming to protect the games slated to air on ABC, with an estimated $25 million to $30 million booked in advertising for the day according to Sportico.
Wednesday’s announcement came less than 24 hours after the Nets had signed Wenyen Gabriel to a 10-day contract. However, the hope is Brooklyn should begin to get a number of players back from COVID protocol by the time Christmas Day rolls around.
That would help alleviate the roster crunch that Brooklyn has found itself under and possibly allow for some of the Nets’ most talented players to return.
Currently, Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, James Harden, LaMarcus Aldridge, DeAndre’ Bembry, Jevon Carter, James Jonson, Bruce Brown, Paul Millsap, and Day’Ron Sharpe are all in the NBA’s health and safety protocol.
