| The Detroit News
Pistons coach Dwane Casey has lamented that the one consistency during the pandemic is the unpredictability of the virus and the impact it will have on the schedule and logistics.
Pistons coach Dwane Casey has lamented that the one consistency during the pandemic is the unpredictability of the virus and the impact it will have on the schedule and logistics.
It’s affected the Pistons’ schedule once again.
Monday’s matinee matchup against the Miami Heat at AmericanAirlines Arena, originally scheduled for 3 p.m., has been moved to Monday night at 8 p.m., the teams announced about 90 minutes before the oringal tip time.
The issue is believed to be with the NBA’s health and safety protocols and procedural things related to player testing — not whether tests are positive or negative. The additional time could provide more time to process and verify the test results.
Traveling parties from each team typically do their COVID testing in the morning and if those tests are inconclusive, it could impact whether a game is will be played — especially an early-afternoon tipoff — if everything isn’t clear.
The Pistons were scheduled to finish their weekend mini-series against the Heat after winning Saturday’s game in what was their best performance of the season.
It’s the Pistons’ second game this season that’s been impacted by COVID, after Friday’s home game against the Washington Wizards was postponed because of contact tracing in the Wizards organization.
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rod.beard@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @detnewsRodBeard