NBA News: Japan's Prime Minister Confirms 2020 Olympics Postponement

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to affect the world at large, the bad news just continues to come in for the sports world. Nearly two weeks ago, the NBA shut down its operation due to a COVID-19 outbreak in the league after a player tested positive.

The NBA's move was an eye-opener for other sports leagues across the country and eventually led to them all shutting down. Seeing as though the coronavirus has affected so many countries at this point, it was beginning to cause concern regarding this summer's big event in Tokyo, Japan.

The 2020 Olympics were in danger of being canceled for the last couple of months now. Even if the show did go on, there could've been a slight possibility that a handful of countries would drop out of the games. Just a couple of days ago, Canada announced its withdrawal from the Olympics.

At this point, however, every country will face the reality that the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo just merely isn't going to happen -- not yet, at least. On Monday, International Olympic Committee Member Dick Pound stated that a move to 2021 is most likely to occur in an interview with USA Today.

And on Tuesday morning, Japan's Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, confirmed that he had reached an agreement with the International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach to postpone the event, according to CNN.

So select NBA players will not only take a notable hiatus as the league remains suspended, but they will also miss the opportunity to perform in the 2020 Olympics. Fortunately, the opportunity isn't ruled out entirely. While the event won't happen this year, it isn't canceled. Per the agreement, the postponement is in place for a year. Therefore, Tokoyo's Olympic games are expected to be in play in the summer of 2021.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_