On the Woj Pod, ESPN NBA analyst Doris Burke revealed that she has tested positive for COVID-19 and detailed her experience with the virus.
Burke’s symptoms first started on March 11 when she was broadcasting the game between the Denver Nuggets and Dallas Mavericks.
“I was so tired, if I tried to get out of bed from Saturday the 14th through Tuesday March 17th, I kid you not, I couldn’t be out of bed for five minutes without needing to go back to bed and lay down,” Burke said. “It was about Tuesday, St. Patrick’s Day, I was thinking, boy, I don’t have any of the normal symptoms, but I thought to myself, it seems to me I should probably get tested.”
Burke went to a local city hospital in Philadelphia to get tested on March 17 and it took eight days to get results.
“I had swabs for both A and B type flu and the second swab for the coronavirus,” Burke said. “I just got confirmed on Wednesday night of this week (March 25) even though I have now been symptom-free.”
In opening up, she is hopeful to make more people aware of the importance of social distancing and other important measures being taken to try and combat the pandemic.
“I cannot begin to express to you the feeling of gratitude I have for health,” Burke said. “And the concern that I just would want people to know. It’s important to social distance and to continue to function with all good practices of hand washing, wiping down surfaces, whatever your trusted medical professionals are telling you. Please, please, follow those.”
Burke is already looking to pay it forward to try to help in the search for a vaccine for the virus.
“What I would like to know is, should I go donate blood or plasma, so that in some way, this could help people if it could help find some sort of vaccine,” Burke said. “That is on my docket to do is to research and discover should I go donate blood in the hopes that somehow this helps someone down the line.”
Some of Burke’s colleagues have already shown their support:
