Dr. William Schaffner of Vanderbilt University Medical Center told Fox News Thursday that the NBA's decision to suspend its season until further notice is an “excellent response” to the coronavirus outbreak, since large events increase the chance of spreading the virus.

“This virus is transmitted person to person largely through close contact, Schaffner told “The Daily Briefing,” "and by avoiding groups and having these large group events canceled, we’ll be keeping ourselves somewhat separated, making it hard for the virus to find another person and another person after that to affect."

NBA SUSPENDS SEASON UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE AFTER PLAYER TESTS POSITIVE FOR CORONAVIRUS

The NBA announced the suspension of play Wednesday night after a player on the Utah Jazz tested positive for COVID-19.

The test result was reported shortly before the Jazz were to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder at Chesapeake Energy Arena. The game was immediately canceled. The affected player was not in the arena, according to an NBA statement.

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“The NBA is suspending gameplay following the conclusion of tonight’s schedule of games until further notice,” the statement read. “The NBA will use this hiatus to determine next steps for moving forward in regard to the coronavirus pandemic.”

Earlier Wednesday, NCAA President Mark Emmert announced that all Division I men's and women's basketball tournament games would be played in arenas without fans.

Fox News’ Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.