Nearly two months ago, Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for the coronavirus just prior to the start of a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, which prompted not only the postponement of that matchup, but ultimately the entire season. Soon, all other sports leagues, as well as most of the country, followed suit and shut down.
In the immediate aftermath, a number of other high-profile players were found to have COVID-19, including Kevin Durant, Marcus Smart and Gobert’s teammate, Donovan Mitchell. Thankfully, all of them have since recovered, and didn’t seem to ever have any serious symptoms.
Still, Mitchell’s diagnosis prompted some pretty negative feelings towards his teammate. Obviously it’s not possible to know if Gobert was the one who passed on the virus, but the big man was acting rather careless in and around the team in the days prior. Most infamously, he made a point to touch every microphone during a press conference.
There were even reports in the following weeks that the relationship between the Jazz’s two best players was on thin ice. But now, according to the team’s executive vice president, Dennis Lindsey, things seemed to have thawed.
This is certainly welcome news if you’re a Jazz fan, and echoes sentiments that both Gobert and Mitchell have expressed. “There’s no fight,” Gobert said in late April, while Mitchell added, “we’ve moved on.”
Obviously only Gobert, Mitchell and the people in the Jazz organization know how fractured the relationship was between the two, but Lindsey’s statement does seem to admit that there was some real strife. He didn’t downplay that it occurred, but rather said that they’re ready to move on.
Given how careless Gobert was acting back in March, it’s no surprise that Mitchell was genuinely upset with him. We’ve seen how deadly this virus can be, and Gobert’s choices could have had real consequences. At the same time, it’s also understandable that after a few months apart, and with time to reflect, Mitchell has chosen to forgive Gobert and move on.
