Williams’s case has chipped away at the …

Williams’s case has chipped away at the sense of security created by that unblemished track record. If Williams’s trip had gone undetected, he would have been cleared to play in the Clippers’ opening night game against the Lakers and to participate in postgame interviews, assuming he passed four days of coronavirus tests upon his return. If he were an asymptomatic carrier of the coronavirus initially, the NBA could have been staring at its worst-case scenario: Williams unwittingly brings the virus into the bubble, plays in a full-contact game between two of the top championship contenders, and takes questions from reporters in close quarters before he or someone else eventually tests positive and the bubble bursts.