Could a Virus Have Been Impacting The Charlotte Hornets During Their 11 Game Losing Streak?
The Charlotte Hornets managed to snap their 11 game losing streak on the road against the Sacramento Kings thanks to "Miracle After Midnight: Part 3". Terry Rozier, who missed the Denver game the night before with an illness was electric, scoring 34 points and closing the game for Charlotte.
The fact Rozier was able to play at all was a surprise, just 24 hours earlier Clifford had said "Terry is really sick... I saw him briefly and he didn't look good. The hope is he can play tomorrow night [In Sacramento], but I'm not even sure if that's reasonable." Rozier beat the odds and did play, having his very own Jordan-esq "Flu Game", but post game we learned Rozier wasn't the only one dealing with illness.
Steve Clifford revealed that despite Brandon Miller being listed as out with a left hip injury, he had also been "Sick all day". Clifford mentioned the team have had a "Virus going around" [The team]. The Hornets have been together travelling on the road for seven of the last 8 games since the 19th of December. In a close contact team environment sharing buses, planes and locker rooms, it's understandable a virus might spread quickly among the team and staff. Looking back at past injury reports Gordon Hayward was listed as dealing with a "Stomach Virus" on December 19th, could that have been the start of the virus circulating among the team?
Although no further players have been listed on the injury report with an illness, it's fair to assume that with how shorthanded the Hornets have been players chose to battle through even if not 100%. I think it's fair to say you can now add "Team Virus" to the list of mitigating factors for Charlotte's longest losing streak since the 2014-15 season. In the future, I'm curious if teams could opt to adopt some procedures introduced during the COVID-19 season when a virus hits. The introduction of social distancing, masks and limited contact time could help stem the spread of a virus around the team.
