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NBA player sprung at strip club in breach of quarantine

sam goodwin
Sports Editor
·4-min read
Lou Williams, pictured here at a strip club while outside the NBA bubble.
Lou Williams was spotted at a strip club while outside the NBA bubble. Image: Twitter/Getty

NBA star Lou Williams has been forced to undergo 10 days of quarantine and will miss two games after improperly extending a family emergency leave.

Players from 22 NBA teams are housed in hotels and playing in a quarantine bubble at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, to resume the 2019-20 season.

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The restarted season gets back underway on Thursday after a March 11 shutdown for the COVID-19 pandemic.

Williams became the third Los Angeles Clippers player given a release for a family emergency, which has disrupted the practice and scrimmage sessions for the team as it prepares to return on Thursday against the LeBron James-led Los Angeles Lakers.

Williams flew home on Thursday to Atlanta to attend a viewing for the death of a family friend.

However he then went to Magic City - a strip club.

When photos of Williams wearing an NBA-issued face mask while with a rapper were posted on social media, it upset Clippers coach Doc Rivers, who has been scrambling to assemble a squad with absent talent.

“Those got out and that's something that we obviously didn't enjoy seeing or like,” Rivers said.

That prompted an investigation by NBA security, and ultimately the 10-day ruling.

Williams visited a club that he has often described as being his favourite restaurant, and the establishment even has chicken wings that are named for him on the menu.

But by being in a group of people and potentially exposing himself to coronavirus, the NBA decided that a longer quarantine was what's required to ensure the safety of those in the bubble.

Players who exit the “bubble” are tested daily while outside the campus and must spend at least four days in quarantine in their hotel rooms upon their return, with medical experts able to stretch that quarantine time to 10 days if they feel it's required.

With Williams receiving the maximum isolation time starting on Saturday, he is assured of missing the Clippers opener against the Lakers and a game against New Orleans next Saturday.

Williams will also forfeit $150,000 in salary, Bobby Marks of ESPN reported ahead of the suspension.

Lou Williams, pictured here in action for the LA Clippers in the NBA.
Lou Williams in action for the LA Clippers in the NBA. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)

LA Clippers struggling without key players

The Clippers have also excused Patrick Beverley and Montrezl Harrell for family emergencies in the past week.

The Clippers also had Ivica Zubac and Landry Shamet not with the team from the time it arrived in Orlando.

The Clippers were without stars Kawhi Leonard and Paul George for much of the prior part of the season due to injury recovery and rest.

At 44-20, the Clippers enter the restart second to the Lakers in the Western Conference.

All clubs will play eight games to complete the regular season, then begin the playoffs next month.

with agencies