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Players-only NBA 2K tournament to air on ESPN during coronavirus shutdown

The tourney, which will feature 16 of the NBA’s best video gamers, will broadcast on ESPN.

Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell will be among the NBA 2K players, according to the report.
Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell will be among the NBA 2K players, according to the report.Read moreSarah Stier / AP
    by Keith Pompey
    Updated 
    Published 

NBA fans will get to see some of their favorite players competing again shortly.

It just won’t be on a court in an actual game.

The league is planning a players-only NBA 2K tournament. The tourney, which will feature 16 of the NBA’s best video gamers, will broadcast on ESPN starting Friday.

The 10-day tournament features 16 players: Donovan Mitchell (Utah Jazz), Kevin Durant (Brooklyn Nets), Trae Young (Atlanta Hawks), Chester native Derrick Jones (Miami Heat), Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton (Phoenix Suns), free agent DeMarcus Cousins, Harrison Barnes (Sacramento Kings), Hassan Whiteside (Portland Trail Blazers), Pat Beverley and Montrezl Harrell (Los Angeles Clippers), Rui Hachimura (Washington Wizards), Michael Porter (Denver Nuggets), Andre Drummond (Cleveland Cavaliers), Zach LaVine (Chicago Bulls), and Domantas Sabonis (Indiana Pacers).

All NBA games were suspended March 11 after it was learned Utah center Rudy Gobert had tested positive for the coronavirus. Commissioner Adam Silver announced the next day that play would be suspended for at least 30 days. However, the NBA might not resume until June at the earliest.

The NBA could lose around $500 million in ticket revenue if the season is canceled, according to reports.

Three unnamed members of the Sixers organization have tested positive for COVID-19. On Saturday, the New York Knicks announced that James Dolan, team owner and executive chairman of Madison Square Garden Company, tested positive for the coronavirus.

That brought the NBA’s number of coronavirus cases to at least 15.

However, Gobert and his Jazz teammate Mitchell are among those who have been cleared recently after having tested positive, along with the Detroit Pistons’ Christian Wood, the Boston Celtics’ Marcus Smart, and two unidentified Los Angeles Lakers.

Former NBA player Jason Collins revealed last week that he tested positive. He asked for people to say safe and continue to practice social distancing. The 41-year-old also thanked healthcare workers. He labeled them true heroes on the front line.