After a positive coronavirus test delayed his return to the United States, Nuggets center Nikola Jokic is expected to join the team in Orlando in the coming days, head coach Mike Malone told reporters on Friday.
“The hope is that he will be here soon,” Malone told reporters, including ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk via Zoom after the team practiced. “I have spoken to him many times. I know he’s excited and looking forward to getting down here. He’s healthy, he feels great, hopefully he will be here soon in the next couple of days.”
The 25-year-old tested positive for COVID-19 in his native Serbia and needed two negative tests in the country before being able to join his teammates stateside. Jokic will need two negative tests in the United States before he can practice with the Nuggets. Jokic was asymptomatic at the time of his positive test and as Malone stated, he is in good health.
In 65 games before the pandemic shuttered play, Jokic was having a solid season, averaging a career-high 20.2 PPG to go along with 10.2 RPG for the Nuggets. The hope remains that Jokic can be at full health once the 2019/20 season resumes in Orlando.
I wonder if him losing the weight. Is due to virus. Some people lose a lot of weight battling virus. I’m curious to see how he plays.
Wouldn’t think so, the report he was asymptomatic, no symptoms no reason to have lost wait due to a virus, at least that is my understanding.
I wouldn’t worry about his play though, last year he was by a landslide the best player in the playoffs with a stat line of 25/13/9 & shooting line of 51/39/85 & a PER of 29.6. I think he really gets motivated when it comes the post-season!
He may have had the highest PER, but he was by no means the best player in the playoffs by a landslide. That’s absurd. He’s not even close to being Giannis, Harden, or Kawhi. Donatas Motiejunas actually had the highest PER of anyone in the playoffs (33.14) so does that mean he was better than anyone else during the 2019 postseason?
There could be explanations, but he & Harden will be under scrutiny.
Interesting how two of the softest bodies in the NBA became two of the leanest (to be generous). Probably good in the long run, regatdless.
Could simply have been a false positive, there are quite a few of those.