The Utah Jazz hate this ongoing March with a passion. On the 11th day of the month, the team's two-time Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY) Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19, which then led to the suspension of the NBA regular season. 24 hours later, the Jazz's All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell tested positive for the virus, too.

It remains to be seen what the virus will do to the two star players – so far both seem to be healthy – but one problem has already made itself clear: There's a fallout between Mitchell and Gobert.

"Mending this bump in the road between Mitchell and Gobert could become the biggest challenge for Jazz coach Quin Snyder and the front office to date," posted Tony Jones of "The Athletic."

It's true there has been no proof that it was Gobert who brought the virus to the league. The French giant apologized and tried to aid efforts in dealing with the virus via donations. However, it seems as though he could be "patient zero" since Gobert was indeed the first who tested positive in the league. Meanwhile, the widely circulated clip of him touching all of the reporters' microphones and recorders at a press conference and reports about him touching teammates and their belongings in the locker room – all before he tested positive for the virus – did not help.

In 2016 summer, the Jazz signed a four-year, 102 million U.S. dollar contract with Gobert, expecting him to be a corner stone of the team and he did it. In the following three seasons, Gobert averaged 14.5 points, 12.1 rebounds and 2.4 blocks. He also won two straight DPOY awards in 2018 and 2019. Simply speaking, Gobert is already the league's best defensive big man.

However, Mitchell's value to Utah is just as extraordinary. As the overall 13th select in 2017, he became the team's leader from the first year and helped Utah enter the playoffs in two consecutive seasons. While playing as the team's sharpest blade in offense, Mitchell is never afraid of taking the responsibility as the leader.

No wonder Utah made them the dual cores of the franchise and betted on this season to contest the championship. However, that goal seems increasingly unlikely now.

First, though neither Mitchell nor Gobert have suffered any physical damage from COVID-19 so far, one of the most intimidating things about this virus is that it can badly hurt patients' lung function. Some argue that even after recovery, one may be only left with 70 percent of his lung function.

That will be nightmare for NBA players who rely on athleticism and strength to work on the court.

Second, even if the two survive the disease and are 100 percent healthy, will they really be able to work as teammates like they did before? It hurts the team most when players on the court are at odds in their hearts, not to mention that Mitchell and Gobert are Utah's most important players.

Then should the Jazz get rid of one of them? This is a tricky question. Mitchell (23 years old) is younger than Gobert (27 years old) and still has two years left of his rookie contract. Moreover, Mitchell is already an outstanding scorer and has the potential to become a playmaker. By contrast, Gobert, despite his top defense, lacks offensive skills and relies heavily on teammates' passing in scoring.

However, that does not necessarily make trading Gobert the right choice. First, excellent defensive big man is rare to find in the league. Second, without Gobert, the Jazz can say goodbye to this season. Third, it's predictable that the Jazz may want to send Gobert away. Under such circumstances, they can hardly expect valuable assets in return.

For Utah's front office, the good news is that the regular season does not seem any closer to restarting so they have plenty of time to try to repair the relationship between Mitchell and Gobert. Nonetheless, if the team cannot make them bury the hatchet, they will have some really hard decisions to make.