The NBA says nearly 20 of the 302 players it tested for coronavirus do, in fact, have it ... this just 2 weeks before the league is set to kick off its Orlando bubble return.
The Association made the announcement Friday ... saying, in total, 16 players' COVID-19 results came back positive after a round of testing on June 23.
The NBA did NOT reveal which players tested positive -- but in the last few days, stars like Jabari Parker and Nikola Jokic had their diagnosis confirmed publicly.
"Any player who tested positive will remain in self-isolation until he satisfies public health protocols for discontinuing isolation and has been cleared by a physician," the league said.
It's a troubling announcement for the NBA ... the league is just days away from kicking off training camps in Florida on July 7.
The season, meanwhile, is scheduled to begin just a few weeks after that on July 30.
Several players have already opted out of heading to Orlando over coronavirus concerns ... with Mavericks stud Willie Cauley-Stein the latest to pull out this week.
Of course, several other players -- including Kyrie Irving and Dwight Howard -- have wondered if the league should even try to restart, and instead focus on the ongoing fight for racial justice.