Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder heart Chet Holmgren will miss at the least eight to 10 weeks with a hip fracture, the staff introduced following Sunday’s loss towards the Golden State Warriors. The harm to higher portion of the suitable hip referred to as the iliac wing got here on a scary fall within the first quarter.
Simply over midway via the body, Holmgren jumped to contest a layup try by Warriors ahead Andrew Wiggins. As Wiggins made contact with Holmgren’s higher half, his decrease half tilted parallel to the ground as he fell to the ground with power. The brunt of the affect seemed to be on Holmgren’s proper hip and facet.
The 7-foot-1 massive man gave the thumbs up as he made his strategy to the locker room at Paycom Heart, however didn’t return to the sport.
Holmgren, who completed scoreless with 4 rebounds in 5 minutes of motion, is off to a implausible begin to his sophomore season. He is elevated his numbers throughout the board, coming into Sunday’s recreation with averages of 18 factors and 9 rebounds. His 2.9 blocks per recreation have been good for second within the NBA.
The timing of Holmgren’s harm is lower than very best for the 8-2 Thunder. Prized offseason acquisition Isaiah Hartenstein, who could be the following in line within the center, continues to be out after breaking his left hand throughout a preseason recreation, whereas backup heart Jaylin Williams will miss at the least a pair extra weeks with a hamstring harm. Oklahoma Metropolis coach Mark Daigneault will doubtless must depend on small-ball lineups for so long as Holmgren is out until the entrance workplace makes a transfer to tide the roster over till Hartenstein’s return. Final season, the Thunder signed Bismack Biyombo for late-season heart insurance coverage, however he hardly performed. Oklahoma Metropolis’s taking part in model depends on having an enormous man who can house the ground, and given the rarity of such gamers, the already-small Thunder might elect to experience out Holmgren’s harm and make do with what they’ve.