Milwaukee Bucks vs. Wizards postponed: Everything we know so far
The first Milwaukee Bucks game of the 2020-21 season has been officially postponed.
The NBA announced late Wednesday night that the Bucks’ upcoming home game versus the Washington Wizards Friday night has been postponed as the Wizards continue to suffer multiple positive COVID-19 cases.
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As Marc Stein of the New York Times noted, this will be the Wizards’ sixth straight game to be postponed by the NBA as they reportedly have six players in health and safety protocols.
While Washington was able to return to practice Wednesday, the league made mention of that the time between games and the inability to practice for the last week-and-a-half as what factored into their decision to postpone the game.
NBA says the game is being postponed because of “the number of available players for the Wizards, contact tracing for other players on their roster, and the length of time preceding the game during which the team was unable to practice.”
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) January 21, 2021
The last point was big from Beal & Brooks https://t.co/DR1IblivHd
The Milwaukee Bucks’ meeting with the Washington Wizards will be made up at a future date.
While the Wizards have a growing number of games to make up at a future time, the Bucks will have more time between their game versus the Los Angeles Lakers and when they host the Atlanta Hawks Sunday night.
Of course, this news could have been way worse as the Bucks have been able to stave off positive cases a month into their run. After all, it could have been the Bucks that were in the Wizards’ position and the uncertainty facing this season might mean the Bucks have an outbreak they have to contain and overcome down the line.
Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer recently spoke on the slew of cancellations the NBA has had to make with teams around the league recording positive cases to Kane Pitman of Milwaukee Magazine:
"“All of us put a lot of faith in the league and [Commissioner] Adam Silver that they’re making decisions with our health and our safety in mind,” Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer said prior to a recent game. “It certainly feels like we are being pushed to that limit.”"
That faith has surely been tested as players and coaches have come to grips with the new set of protocols that the league has set to ensure teams don’t continue having multiple players come down with COVID-19. But no matter the case, the NBA is weathering a brutal storm that has really set back Washington’s season very specifically.
dark. Next. Panic or patience on three struggling Bucks
Now the Bucks will have an extra day between games with Friday night being postponed. Considering the circumstances, the Bucks are counting their stars that have and continue to stay free of having players come up with positive COVID-19 tests.