Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons sidelined for NBA All-Star game 2021 due to Covid-19 contact tracing
After months of anticipation and doubt, fans will finally be able to catch the NBA All-Star game 2021 tonight. Team LeBron will take on Team Durant at the State Farm Arena in a contest that will be played without fans due to the threat of the Covid-19 pandemic.
NBA All-Star game 2021: Philadelphia 76ers duo Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons ruled out
According to Shams Charania and Adrian Wojnarowski, Philadelphia 76ers' stars Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid will not be allowed to feature in tonight's NBA All-Star game due to league's Covid-19 contact tracing policy. With the game set to tip-off tonight, there will be no replacements for Embiid or Simmons at this late hour.
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However, the highly anticipated event will go ahead as intended as both the stars didn't come in contact with other participating players. Embiid was selected by Kevin Durant in the NBA All-Star game 2021 draft, while Simmons was going to be a part of LeBron James' team.
LA Lakers power forward Anthony Davis was the first player to be ruled out of this high-profile encounter due to an injury. His replacement, the Phoenix Suns' Devin Booker, followed suit and was replaced by Utah Jazz veteran guard Mike Conley. Conley will make his first NBA All-Star game appearance tonight.
There has been a lot of skepticism for several months about the event going through in the first place, as the players were concerned about their safety because of the ongoing pandemic. However, the NBA and NBPA mutually decided that the game should go through and as a result the fans will be able to view the NBA All-Star game 2021 tonight. Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid, however,won't be featuring in it.
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