Donovan Mitchell was the second NBA player that tested positive for the coronavirus after his teammate, Rudy Gobert, became the first player to test positive. Gobert had been careless in the locker room in terms of touching other players and their belongings despite warnings about the severity of the situation, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
On Thursday afternoon, Mitchell took to Instagram to confirm the fact that he had tested positive for the coronavirus, and to thank those that had reached out to him since the news broke. On Saturday, Mitchell provided an update via video and told fans that he feels fine, and is spending his time in isolation playing video games.
"Just want to say thank you guys so much for your continued support. It means a lot to me," the 23-year-old Mitchell said. "I feel fine. Things are going well. Just taking the proper precautions as told to me by the authorities. I was told to stay in isolation, so, solo in here, playing videogames all day. Can't wait to get back out there and play in front of the best fans in the world. Really miss playing in front of you guys and I'll see you guys soon."
A message from @spidadmitchell pic.twitter.com/YtChd3eNng
— NBA (@NBA) March 14, 2020
The league announced it has suspended the current season after Wednesday night's matchup between the Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder was postponed as a result of Gobert testing positive. The contest between the Jazz and Thunder was the first of two games that was cancelled on Wednesday night, as the game between the Pelicans and Kings was also called off.
Mitchell was the only member of the Jazz other than Gobert to test positive for the coronavirus, per Charania. However, Detroit Pistons big man Christian Wood, who defended Gobert in a game last Saturday, has also tested positive, per Charania. A charter flight carrying Jazz team members landed back in Utah on Thursday, though it isn't clear if if Mitchell and Gobert were on the flight. The league has told teams that have played Utah in the last 10 days that they should self-quarantine. Utah's opponents since March 2 include the Cleveland Cavaliers, New York Knicks, Boston Celtics, Detroit Pistons and Toronto Raptors.
Unfortunately, Gobert's cavalier attitude toward the situation didn't end with his teammates. On Monday, Gobert was spotted purposely touching the microphones and audio recorders on the podium during his media session, as seen below:
So...here is Rudy touching all the mics following Mondays shoot around that has some people concerned... #TakeNote #utahjazz #CoronaVirus pic.twitter.com/dr4auECTr4
— Dave Fox (@Davefox2) March 12, 2020
Gobert has since apologized for his actions. The story is still developing, and we will likely learn more about the NBA's plans regarding how, or if, to proceed with the 2019-20 season in the coming days.