Raptors' Siakam, VanVleet, Anunoby out vs. Pistons due to COVID protocols

There are positive signs that the Pistons–Raptors game in Tampa will be played on Wednesday but Toronto will have to go without three starters. Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet and OG Anunoby have ruled out under the league’s health and safety protocols, Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports tweets. Malachi Flynn and Patrick McCaw will also be sidelined by the protocols. Jalen Harris and Donta Hall have been recalled from the G League bubble in Orlando, Lewenberg adds.

Most of the coaching staff, including head coach Nick Nurse, will also miss the game, Tim Bontemps of ESPN tweets. Those coaches were placed under the protocols before Toronto's game on Friday. Sergio Scariolo will run the team on Wednesday. The Raptors had their game against Chicago on Sunday postponed. They were originally scheduled to face Detroit on Tuesday.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

• Marcus Smart is “getting a lot closer” to returning to action, according to Celtics coach Brad Stevens. Mark Murphy of the Boston Globe tweets that Smart will benefit from additional team practice time after the All-Star break. Smart has been out since Jan. 30 due to a Grade 1 left calf strain.
• Tom Thibodeau has established himself as a serious candidate for Coach of the Year in his first season with the Knicks, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. Knicks players have been impressed with how hard the staff works, and it has resulted in a winning record entering Tuesday’s game.
• The Sixers have been given the go-ahead by the city of Philadelphia to bring back crowds in a limited capacity, the team tweets. The team will be allowed to have crowds at 15% capacity, or approximately 3,100 fans.
• Derrick Rose missed the Knicks' game against San Antonio on Tuesday after being placed under the league’s health and safety protocols, the team’s PR department tweets.