UPDATE - NBA: Donovan Mitchell tests positive for COVID-19

ADDS INSTAGRAM POSTS FROM MITCHELL AND GOBERT

By Muhammed Enes Calli

ANKARA (AA) - NBA team Utah Jazz's All-Star forward Donovan Mitchell has tested positive for the novel coronavirus, ESPN reporter Adrian Wojnarowski said Thursday.

"Jazz star Donovan Mitchell has tested positive for the coronavirus, league sources tell ESPN. Jazz players privately say that Rudy Gobert had been careless in the locker room touching other players and their belongings. Now a Jazz teammate has tested positive," Wojnarowski posted on Twitter.

Mitchell became the second infected NBA player after his teammate Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19 late Wednesday.

"Thanks to everyone who has been reaching out since hearing the news about my positive test," Mitchell said on Instagram.

"We are all learning more about the seriousness of this situation and hopefully people can continue to educate themselves and realize that they need to behave responsibly both for their own health and for the well-being of those around them," he added.

Gobert also apologized on Instagram for possibly endangering others after becoming infected.

"I want to thank everyone for the outpouring of concern and support over the last 24 hours. I have gone through so many emotions since learning of my diagnosis…mostly fear, anxiety and embarrassment," he said.

"The first and most important thing is I would like to publicly apologize to the people that I may have endangered. At the time, I had no idea I was even infected. I was careless and make no excuse.”

The National Basketball Association (NBA) previously announced that it had suspended the remainder of the season due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The novel coronavirus originated in Wuhan, China last December and has spread to at least 114 countries.

The global death toll is now over 4,600, with more than 124,500 confirmed cases, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), which has declared the outbreak "a pandemic."