9 former Kentucky players currently in NBA health and safety protocols

The latest COVID-19 variant is doing its very best to ensure that all five NBA Christmas Day games are as contagious and boring as possible.

Over the last several weeks, Omicron has ravaged the NBA with new players entering health and safety protocols seemingly every hour and multiple games receiving postponements. All-Star players such as Kevin Durant, Luka Doncic, Trae Young, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Bradley Beal, among plenty others, are currently sidelined due to Covid-19 protocols. James Harden and Zach Lavine were just cleared out of protocols on Thursday.

Unfortunately, with so many former Kentucky players suiting up night in and night out for their respective NBA teams (30 one-time Wildcats have played at least one minute of NBA action in the 2021-22 season), they were bound to meet a similar fate.

As of Thursday night, nine different BBNBAers are currently in the NBA’s health and safety protocols, including a trio from the New York Knicks: Karl-Anthony Towns (MIN), De’Aaron Fox (SAC), Mychal Mulder (ORL), Nerlens Noel (NYK), Kevin Knox (NYK), Immanuel Quickley (NYK), Malik Monk (LAL), Jarred Vanderbilt (MIN), and Enes Kanter Freedom (BOS).

That’s nine out of a possible 30 former UK players dealing with the effects of COVID-19.

Towns is actually the most recent addition, as it was announced ahead of the Minnesota Timberwolves game against the Utah Jazz that he had entered protocols. Needless to say, he was not very happy. Towns previously contracted COVID-19 earlier this year.

Can’t catch a f*%@ing break!

— Karl-Anthony Towns (@KarlTowns) December 23, 2021

This doesn’t even take into account the absence of Los Angeles Lakers star Anthony Davis, who is out right now due to an ankle injury.

Over 25 percent of the entire NBA has entered health and safety protocols at some point this season, the majority of them coming over the last two weeks. As a result of this significant spike in cases (and in order to keep the season alive moving forward), the NBA is changing its approach to dealing with COVID-19.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Thursday afternoon that the league and its Player’s Association were nearing an agreement to reduce the mandated 10-day quarantine period for COVID-positive players. The belief is it could be reduced to as few as a six-day quarantine. As of right now, the NBA does not require daily testing for COVID-19.

With five Christmas Day NBA games just two days away now and G League players riddled throughout rosters, the appeal is dropping. There might be no Davis, Young, Durant, Doncic, or Antetokounmpo on one of the NBA’s biggest days for ratings.