Forward Rui Hachimura underwent surgery on Friday to repair a nasal fracture he sustained during Wednesday’s loss to Dallas, the Lakers announced (Twitter link via Jovan Buha of The Athletic). The 25-year-old will be reevaluated in about a week.
It’s an unfortunate setback for Hachimura, who missed four games earlier this season while in the NBA’s concussion protocol. If he returns in exactly one week, which seems optimistic, he would miss another four games — the Lakers begin a four-game road trip tomorrow in Cleveland that runs through next Thursday.
Hachimura, who re-signed with L.A. as a restricted free agent over the summer, is off to a solid start to the 2023/24 season, averaging 11.8 PPG, 3.8 RPG and 0.9 SPG on .505/.429/.786 shooting through 12 games (23.3 MPG).
Here are a few more injury-related notes from around the NBA:
- Celtics big man Kristaps Porzingis tells Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe that he’ll undergo an MRI on Saturday after tweaking his left calf during Friday’s loss to Orlando (Twitter link). Porzingis, who is averaging 19.6 PPG, 6.9 RPG and 1.8 BPG on .553/.329/.810 shooting through 14 games (30.8 MPG) with his new club, is optimistic that the injury isn’t serious. He also says he didn’t slip, which some players have mentioned as being an issue with the in-season tournament courts.
- Thunder wing Jalen Williams was unable to practice on Friday and will miss his third straight game on Saturday due to a left hip strain, tweets Rylan Stiles of Locked on Thunder. A 2022 lottery pick (12th overall) who finished runner-up for Rookie of the Year in ’22/23, Williams is averaging 17.5 PPG, 4.1 RPG and 3.6 APG on .518/.368/.880 shooting in 13 games (33.2 MPG) for Oklahoma City, which holds the second-best record in the Western Conference at 11-4.
- Speaking to the media on Friday, Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons said his surgically repaired thumb is improving, adding that he’s been doing ball-handling and “a little bit of shooting,” according to Sean Highkin of the Rose Garden Report (Twitter link). As Highkin notes, Simons has been out for approximately four weeks, and he was expected to miss about six weeks.
Just to underscore, C’s are too thin here (Stevens, vs. Ainge’s formula)-Jerry Tarkanian “8deep formula” might’ve worked in the 80’s, in the NCAA, but NOT nearly 40 years later (!) in the NBA-
Considering I’ve never heard of four guys on their roster, I’m inclined to agree.
Especially with KP being so injury prone and Horford bring so old. Are they even eight deep? I’d say six.
Wow.
The new Big 3 in OKC is SGA, Chet and Jalen Williams.
Things could get interesting if OKC decides that their time is now. Might be a situation where Zach LaVine actually fits. They have the assets to add him while keeping SGA, Chet and Jalen Williams in-tact. LaVine’s money is only what Josh Giddey is now not gonna get. Giddey struggles with his shot. LaVine upgrades that.
in-tact? What?
No way OKC wants anything to do with Lavine.
VB-OKC should have “Plenty” of assets to land Levine, AND Derozen, and it wouldn’t cost them much, I bet. Compare that to the C’s, officially in deep trouble now, on the trade front. OKC would be wise, my opinion, to stand pat, for now-Orlando and OKC are spooky good young teams upcoming-issue ahead will boil down to each club’s mgmt. into the future-would always “Hold” on those young, deep cores myself.
Oh, yes, the Celtics are in big trouble for certain,