Report: NBA reducing COVID return time for some players / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports Credit Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

Some NBA players could face a shorter waiting period to return to action following a positive COVID-19 test.

ESPN reported Friday that the league and the National Basketball Players Association have agreed on a new health and safety protocol for vaccinated and asymptomatic players who have tested positive.

Previously, such players could be cleared after seven days if tests showed their cycle threshold (CT) levels were above 35. The new protocol reduces that span to five days with a ST level above 30, per the report.

The CT levels help to determine how infectious someone might be.

The timetable reduction comes as the omicron variant continues to ravage NBA rosters. As of Friday, a total of 260 players had entered the COVID-19 protocol this season -- 247 in December alone, per ESPN.

--Field Level Media

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