Stephen Curry Sparks Coronavirus Concern With Latest Illness - report
Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry was supposed to play against the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday night. However, he was eventually sidelined because of flu.
Given the current coronavirus scare in the U.S. and all over the world, there were concerns that the two-time MVP may have contratced the virus. With that said, the team quickly took action and confirmed that Curry is safe from the deadly disease.
According to the team's physician Dr. Robert Nied, Steph is not showing signs of the coronavirus, which has infected more than 100,000 people in 90 countries and killed more than 3,400 people. In the US, there have been 400 confirmed cases.
The Warriors' PR statement read: "This morning, Stephen Curry was diagnosed with influenza A by positive viral testing. We have identified his probable source contact who is not part of basketball operations," it continued, "He has no specific risk factors for COVID-19. He has seasonal flu. We have begun treatment for Stephen and instituted our team protocol for influenza exposure."
The statemet comes two hours before the Warriors' game against the Sixers at Chase Center, and five hours after he was listed on the team's injury report as being out with an illness.
Warrior coach Steve Kerr said that he spent much of Friday with Curry, who did not show any flu symptoms until Saturday morning.
Kerr revealed that Curry's son was sick for a couple of days, so Steph might have gotten it from the him. Moreover, Kerr highlighted that the growing fear surrounding COVID-19 was something he and his team have talked about together in recent years.
"We had our team doctor come in and address us a few days ago, so I'm no expert. It's a concern, but we're doing our job to come in and get ready for the game and play the game, and the league will tell us what will be next," Kerr said.
The team's decision to provide details on Curry's condition speaks volume about the growing concern about the virus spread in the U.S.
With the global death toll surging past 3,000, there are intensifying concerns generally impacting society and specifically affecting the sports world.
Last week, the San Francisco Department of Public Health suggested canceling or delaying large gatherings, such as sporting events, because of the NCOV-19 outbreak.
It was reported that across the country, sports teams have been taking the necessary protections as to not jeopardize their players and fans to the coronavirus.
For the Warriors, they declared on Friday that they were increasing cleaning staff to the event, while elevator attendants would be armed with wipe containers and sanitizers. All doors and door handles would be disinfected regularly as well, and extra soap would become available in all lavatories.
The NBA, along with the other major North American sports leagues, is also considering limiting locker room access as a precaution to protect players from contact to the coronavirus.
The NBA told all its teams last Tuesday to submit a plan to limit the number of teams and arena staff who intermingle with players as part of their response approaches.
Teams were also told to have a procedure with an infectious disease specialist and find a facility that could conduct testing for the coronavirus.
