NBA officials have postponed the game the Toronto Raptors were scheduled to play against the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night because the Toronto team will not be able to count on eight players available, the minimum required.
The announcement by the NBA comes a day after the Raptors added the names of four players to the NBA’s COVID-19 protocols. These additions brought the number of team color bearers discarded for reasons related to the coronavirus to seven.
The names of Fred VanVleet, Malachi Flynn, Scottie Barnes and Precious Achiuwa were added yesterday, joining those of Gary Trent Jr., Pascal Siakam and Dalano Banton.
In addition, center Khem Birch cannot play due to swelling in one knee.
The Raptors have tried to make up for those absences by signing four-player G-League deals under the NBA’s “save clause”.
This is the third game of the Raptors that is postponed, after that scheduled last Monday in Toronto against the Orlando Magic and another scheduled to take place at Scotiabank Arena on December 13 against the Bulls.
Earlier in the day, the NBA postponed the meeting that the Brooklyn Nets were to play in Portland, against the Trailblazers.
Like the Raptors, the Nets will not have the required minimum of eight players. It is the third game in a row for the Nets that is postponed.
As a result, the Nets’ next game will not take place until Saturday, as part of the five-game schedule on Christmas Day.
According to information circulating, the Nets have 10 players in the NBA’s COVID-19 protocols, including Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving, even though the latter has yet to play a single game this season.