Los Angeles Clippers star Lou Williams will have to complete a 10-day quarantine upon arrival at the NBA bubble in Orlando, Florida, the league announced Sunday.
The Clippers’ Lou Williams will be quarantined for 10 days on the Orlando campus after picking up food in Magic City for an excused absence, leaving him out for the first two qualifying games, the NBA says.
– Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 26, 2020
Williams left the site with an excused absence after his grandfather’s death, but was photographed in Magic City, a strip club in Atlanta. He said he was collecting food.
Quarantine forces Williams to miss two games
The move will separate him from two of the eight regular season games that begin next week. In regularly excused absences, as long as the player tests negative for the COVID-19 coronavirus every day while away, he will remain in quarantine for only four days.
In that case, he would have done so for the Clippers’ opening game Thursday against the Los Angeles Lakers. Instead, he will miss that game and a Saturday matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans.
Clippers coach Doc Rivers told reporters Williams had returned to campus on Saturday, which means he will likely end his quarantine on August 3 and could return for the August 4 game against the Phoenix Suns.
Williams will also lose up to $ 150,000 in salary, ESPN’s Bobby Marks reported before the suspension.
Williams’ approved trip becomes troublesome saga
Los Angeles shooting guard Lou Williams will miss the team’s first two games after the restart after he was seen at a strip club in Atlanta. (AP Photo / Mark J. Terrill)
The 15-year veteran left the bubble on Thursday to attend a visit to his grandfather, Paul G. Williams. He reportedly finished around 6 p.m. and was later seen on Instagram stories at Magic City, a strip club in Atlanta.
At first Williams said it was an old photo. Then she turned and admitted that she visited the place, but was there to collect food.
Ask any of my roommates which is my favorite restaurant in Atlanta. There is nobody to party. Relax lol #Maskon #inandout
– Lou Williams (@ TeamLou23) July 24, 2020
The NBA announced Saturday night that it would investigate Williams’ activities while he was away from the bubble to assess how long he should be quarantined upon return. Her outside infectious disease specialists may recommend a longer quarantine period, ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne reported, if she determines that the player is at increased risk of contracting COVID-19 while away.
What does Williams’ quarantine mean for Clippers?
The Clippers (44-20) are short in the bubble with multiple players with excused absences.
Williams, 33, is averaging 18.7 points and 5.7 assists per game from the bench for the second-place Western Conference team.
In addition to Williams, Montrezl Harrell, Patrick Beverley, Landry Shamet, and Ivica Zubac are absent or quarantined. All five players are incumbents or key players.
Zubac returned to the bubble on Friday and had a two-day quarantine, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reported. Shamet is also apparently on the way.
