LeBron James Cleared to Play After False Positive Virus Test

The Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has been cleared to play in the team’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday after a false positive coronavirus test landed him in the N.B.A.’s health and safety protocols earlier this week, the league said in a news release.

After initially testing positive on Tuesday, James returned two negative tests, 24 hours apart, administered by league officials. That enabled him to be taken out of the league’s health and safety protocols, according to the league.

In keeping with their enhanced coronavirus protocols after Thanksgiving, N.B.A. officials collected a sample to test on Monday and received a positive result on Tuesday. They used another instrument to test the same sample, and that test returned an inconclusive result. Consequently, James was placed into the league’s health and safety protocols.

James had been with the Lakers in Sacramento, where they were set to play the Kings on Tuesday night. The team arranged for a medical plane to take James back to Los Angeles, according to a person familiar with James’s situation.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/02/sports/lebron-james-covid-test.html