Kevin Durant: Nets star calls out NBA due to bizarre COVID-19 protocols

Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant ended up as the main talking point after the Nets fell 123-117 to the Toronto Raptors on Friday night, but for reasons that had nothing to do with his play on the court. Ultimately, Brooklyn, fresh off a win over the Clippers, lost to Toronto because of what transpired with Durant.

Durant was originally taken out of the lineup after an inconclusive COVID-19 test despite testing negative three times in 24 hours. After being allowed to return and play 19 minutes, Durant was removed again, which contributed to Brooklyn’s loss.

After the league claimed that “an abundance of caution” was the main reason that Durant was removed from the game, he fought back by asserting that NBA fans won’t be fooled by this explanation, adding that “wack ass PR tactics” won’t be enough to satisfy fans confused as to how effective the NBA’s COVID-19 protocols are.

Nets star Kevin Durant was upset about the NBA’s indecisiveness.

We’re nearly a year into this pandemic and several weeks into the NBA season, and the league still has absolutely no idea what to do whenever they get an inconclusive test. Letting Durant back in the game, only to remove him later, was not only frustrating for players and fans alike, but it put both teams in jeopardy.

To say nothing about what could potentially become of Brooklyn on the court without Durant, if the NBA is worried about tracking down close contacts after he returned a positive test, isn’t every Raptors and Nets player that shared the floor with Durant technically a close contact?

The NBA was rightly heralded for the ability to keep the Disney bubble completely free from COVID-19. After such an exemplary display of safety, it seems that the league is making up their 2020-21 protocols on the spot with minimal care and attention whenever a situation like this arises. That mentality is dangerous and irresponsible.

Durant, who tested positive way back in March and has missed time this season due to COVID-19 contact tracing, has every right to be upset, as he is currently stuck in limbo due to the fact that Adam Silver and the NBA still enforce their COVID-19 rules with a painful amount of inconsistency, which is not the way to keep players safe.

In a year where players and administration need to be extremely safety-conscious in order to even conduct a full season, the NBA pulling this stunt on national television gives off the appearance that its COVID-19 protocols are being held together with string and duct tape.

But sure, the All-Star game is a great idea.

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