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Tim BontempsESPN
The Indiana Pacers and Toronto Raptors separately announced Thursday morning that they had canceled practice out of “an abundance of caution” because of the NBA’s health and safety protocols.
Both teams played home games Wednesday night, with the Pacers defeating the New York Knicks and the Raptors losing to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Both are scheduled to host games Friday, with the Pacers getting a visit from the Mavericks in the first meeting between Dallas and its former coach, Rick Carlisle, who is now coaching Indiana. The Raptors host the Knicks.
The Pacers and Raptors have had one common opponent this week: the Washington Wizards, who were in Toronto on Sunday and Indiana on Monday. The Wizards, who lost to both the Pacers and Raptors, won in Detroit in overtime on Wednesday night.
With the NBA requiring all teams to test for several days following Thanksgiving, there has been a corresponding spike in entries into the protocols. Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James missed one game before being able to return after one positive test was followed by multiple negative tests, while several members of the Chicago Bulls and Charlotte Hornets have entered the protocols over the past week.
The Bulls have said that three players — Coby White, Javonte Green and DeMar DeRozan — have tested positive for COVID-19.