NBA Injury Report: December 30
Published: Dec 30, 2021
NBA Non-COVID Injuries
NAME | POS. | TEAM | INJURY | DATE INJURED | EXP. RETURN DATE | ANALYSIS |
Ricky Rubio | PG | CLE | Torn ACL | 28-Dec | OUT FOR THE SEASON | Rubio is the latest Cavs player to get hurt as the team just can't shake injuries and COVID issues. With Darius Garland in the league's protocol for COVID, Isaac Okoro is looking like he's next man up to run point. Cedi Osman can help when he returns to the court. |
Paul George | F | LAC | Elbow | 22-Dec | Mid-To-Late January | George has a tear in his Elbow and with him out of action, Marcus Morris walks into a lot of shots and wings such as Terance Mann and Luke Kennard will see an uptick in shots. When healthy, Reggie Jackson becomes the prioritized scorer. |
Cole Anthony | PG | ORL | Ankle | 26-Dec | Day To Day | Anthony continues to suffer Ankle injuries and with him sidelined again and other Magic players still in the league's COVID protocols, we could see R.J. Hampton get more involved and Gary Harris and Franz Wagner will help with the playmaking. |
Nicolas Batum | F | LAC | Ankle | 26-Dec | Day To Day | Batum hasn't been able to shake the Ankle injuries and if he needs more time off the floor, Terance Mann and Marcus Morris will benefit by seeing more minutes. Brandon Boston could pick up reserve minutes. |
Marcus Smart | G | BOS | Hand | 25-Dec | Day To Day | Smart has missed a couple of games with a Hand injury and he may need another game out and with Dennis Schroder on the COVID list, Jaylen Brown and Payton Pritchard will have to help handle the rock. |
Malcolm Brogdon | PG | IND | Achilles | 21-Dec | Day To Day | Achilles injuries and even soreness takes time to heal and it wouldn't be surprising to see Brogdon continue to sit and with T.J. McConnell already sidelined, Chris Suarte and Caris LeVert will have to help bring up the ball. |
Alex Caruso | G | CHI | Foot | 20-Dec | Day To Day | Just when the Bulls are starting to get healthier, Caruso injures his Foot early in the Bulls last game and we'll have to see if he needs more time off. Coby White will continue to get serious burn until Caruso returns and Lonzo Ball gets off the COVID list. |
Isaiah Hartenstein | PF/C | LAC | Ankle | 18-Dec | No Timetable | Hartenstein is more of a reserve player in the rotation and with Nicolas Batum healthy, he'll help Ivica Zubac and Serge Ibaka in the post with all picking up minutes. Marcus Morris will toggle between PF and C as well. |
Anthony Davis | PF/C | LAL | Knee | 17-Dec | January | With Davis out of action, Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony will be the primary beneficiaries and if LeBron has to move to PF for a bit, Talen Horton-Tucker will see more SF minutes. We've seen DeAndre Jordan as well. |
Derrick Rose | G | NYK | Ankle | 16-Dec | February | With Rose out of action for a while, Alec Burks, Kemba Walker and Immanuel Quickley will help fill the void after the former NBA MVP had Ankle surgery. We'll see him return to action in February (hopefully). |
Luka Doncic | G | DAL | Ankle | 12-Dec | Day To Day | Doncic has missed multiple games wth the injured Ankle. While he's out, Jalen Brunson will take the reins and run point. Kristaps Porzingis becomes the prioritized scorer. We've seen Trey Burke steal a few minutes as well. |
Jerami Grant | F | DET | Thumb | 10-Dec | January-February | With Grant out, Cade Cunningham becomes the prioritized scorer in Detroit while other secondary options such as Saddiq Bey should see more action. Trey Lyles and Isaiah Stewart should see more usage as well. |
Kira Lewis Jr. | PG | NOP | Torn ACL | 8-Dec | OUT FOR THE SEASON | With Lewis out for the rest of the season, Devonte' Graham should see a few more ticks and the pelicans can look to Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Garrett Temple to help run the point. Brandon Ingram could help as well. |
Cody Zeller | C | POR | Quad | 6-Dec | No Timetable | Zeller being out gives more life to Larry Nance Jr. in the Blazers rotation. They should look to get Jusuf Nurkic more playing time as well by giving him 30 minutes per game. Robert Covington indirectly benefits as well. |
CJ McCollum | G | POR | Lung | 6-Dec | Day To Day | Apparently, McCollum is fully recovered and just about ready to take the court again and if he needs to sit for a few more games, Norman Powell and Anfernee Simons will provide relief and help Damian Lillard in the backcourt. |
Solomon Hill | SG/SF | ATL | Hamstring | 5-Dec | No Timetable | Hill's Hamstring is torn and we don't know if he'll play again this season. Cam Reddish and Kevin Huerter both benefit and will see a few more minutes. |
T.J. McConnell | G | IND | Wrist | 1-Dec | January | Malcolm Brogdon logs a lot of minutes and we may not see McConnell until January and Chris Duarte and Brad Wanamaker will see more minutes behind him. |
Jalen Suggs | G | ORL | Thumb | 29-Nov | No Timetable | Suggs being out gives Terrence Ross more life in the Magic's rotation and Gary Harris and Franz Wagner will definitely benefit by seeing more shots. |
Bam Adebayo | PF/C | MIA | Thumb | 29-Nov | January | The primary fill-in for Adebayo while he recovers is Dewayne Dedmon with Omer Yurtseven backing him up. Udonis Haslem is active as well. |
Khem Birch | PF/C | TOR | Knee | 24-Nov | Day To Day | The Raptors frontcourt has been a bit banged up lately and the swelling in Birch's Knee won't drop. Chris Boucher will be the primary beneficiary and the Raptors can always turn to Yuta Watanabe for reserve minutes. |
PJ Dozier | G | DEN | Torn ACL | 23-Nov | OUT FOR THE SEASON | With Dozier done for the year, his 19 minutes per game will be made up by Monte Morris and Bones Hyland. Facundo Campazzo indirectly benefits as the Nuggets mid-court continues to hurt. |
Sam Merrill | SG/SF | MEM | Ankle | 18-Nov | Mid-December | Merrill is on the outside looking into the Bucks rotation and this doesn't make a huge impact. Pat Connaughton and Grayson Allen will continue rotating with Khris Middleton to help with the Bucks mid-court. |
Frank Kaminsky | C | PHX | Knee | 15-Nov | No Timetable | Kaminsky has a stress-reaction in his Knee and we don't know when we'll see him back. While he's out JaVale McGee will be the primary back up behind Deandre Ayton. |
Joe Harris | SG/SF | BKN | Ankle | 14-Nov | January-February | Harris had surgery on his injured Ankle and could miss one to two months. While he's out, Patty Mills and DeAndre Bembry will see more minutes and shots. James Harden will see a small bump in shots as well. |
De'Andre Hunter | F | ATL | Wrist | 12-Nov | January | After having a procedure on his Wrist, Kevin Huerter and Cam Reddish will benefit by seeing more minutes and shots. Danilo Gallinari (when not in protocols) will see more minutes and there won't be as much PF competition. |
Kelly Olynyk | PF/C | DET | Knee | 10-Nov | Late Dec.-Early Jan. | Isaiah Stewart should finally be able to grab more minutes with Olynyk out of commission but for some reason the Pistons don't seem that impressed by him and if we look down the bench, Luka Garza and Trey Lyles will grab more minutes. Olynyk could be out until the year turns to 2022. |
Markieff Morris | PF/C | MIA | Neck | 8-Nov | No Timetable | With Morris still feeling the effects of the Nikola Jokic shove to the ground from behind, KZ Okpala will be the primary beneficiary with P.J. Tucker sidelined. Omer Yurtseven and Dewayne Dedmon will be the Heat's source of size in the paint. |
Collin Sexton | G | CLE | Knee | 7-Nov | OUT FOR THE SEASON | Darius Garland becomes the prioritized scorer and he'll get even more time with the ball with Sexton out after Sexton had Knee surgery. Cedi Osman and Isaac Okoro will help fill the void and both will play reserve minutes behind Lauri Markkanen. |
Michael Porter Jr. | F | DEN | Back | 6-Nov | No Timetable | Porter hasn't looked good at all this year and we don't know when we'll see him take the court again after having Spinal surgery. While he's out, Will Barton will continue picking up the slack and Aaron Gordon certainly benefits and we should see him picking up shots. |
Patrick Williams | F | CHI | Wrist | 28-Oct | OUT FOR THE SEASON | The Bulls one area that they don't have a lot of is frontcourt depth and with Williams season over after this bad Wrist injury, Javonte Green should start to see more playing time. This could open up the rotation if DeMar DeRozan is needed to fill in at PF. |
Brook Lopez | C | MIL | Back | 19-Oct | No Timetable | Lopez had surgery on his Back and we don't know when or if we'll see him take the court this season. Bobby Portis will be Lopez' main fill-in and DeMarcus Cousins will get reserve minutes under the rim. |
Zion Williamson | PF | NOP | Foot | Pre-Season | January-February | Williamson's rehab had to taken down a few notches because his Foot is experiencing a lot of pain and he's having trouble putting full pressure on it. Brandon Ingram, Jonas Valanciunas, WIlly Hernangomez and Herbert Jones will benefit until he's ready. |
Kawhi Leonard | SG/SF | LAC | Torn ACL | Pre-Season | No Timetable | Leonard is one of the biggest question marks heading into the season and we may not see him play at all this year and he's a hard player to stash unless you have unlimited INJ spots. With Leonard out, Nicolas Batum and Terance Mann will get more time in the Clippers rotation. |
Klay Thompson | SG/SF | GSW | Achilles | Pre-Season | January | Thompson has been hurt the last couple of years but he is practicing once again and it's looking like we'll see him back in early January. Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole will fill in until he can finally take the court again. |
Jamal Murray | G | DEN | Torn ACL | Pre-Season | No Timetable | With Murray recovering from a Torn ACL, Monte Morris and Facundo Campazzo will help run the point. Even Will Barton will get some time to handle the rock. |
Victor Oladipo | SG/SF | MIA | Quad | Pre-Season | No Timetable | Oladipo is another player who we may not see until March or April and he's very fragile and another player that is a waste of an INJ spot because he may not play. Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson both benefit with him out. |
Jonathan Isaac | F | ORL | Torn ACL | Pre-Season | No Timetable | Isaac is very fragile and we don't know when we'll see him make his season debut. Wendell Carter Jr. has been filling in at PF and Franz Wagner has done a good job providing offense at SF. |
Markelle Fultz | G | ORL | Torn ACL | Pre-Season | No Timetable | Fultz is going to continue rehabbing in the G-League which is a positive sign regarding his health, but we still don't know when we'll see him play. Terrence Ross and R.J. Hampton will help Cole Anthony run the point. |
T.J. Warren | F | IND | Foot | Pre-Season | No Timetable | We don't know when we'll see Warren back on the court and until he's ready to roll Caris LeVert, Justin Holiday and Oshae Brissett will see more playing time. Some think he'll be back before January and others think the Pacers will proceed with caution keeping Warren out through January. |
Thomas Bryant | C | WAS | Torn ACL | Pre-Season | January | THe Wizards Coaches expect Bryant to suit up again in January. We don't have a set date in stone but we should see him soon. Until he's back, Montrezl Harrell and Daniel Gafford will continue to fill in. |
James Wiseman | C | GSW | Knee | Pre-Season | January-February | The Warriors are hoping to have Wiseman back in the lineup in early 2022. Kevon Looney and Nemanja Bjelica will get more run until Wiseman us 100 percent. Draymond Green will certainly rotate to center to provide relief as well. |
Kendrick Nunn | G | LAL | Knee | Pre-Season | No Timetable | We still don't know when we'll see Nunn take the floor with the Lakers. The timetable has been muddled a bit lately. Rajon Rondo will lose out on playing time once Nunn returns as he will back up Russell Westbrook. |
Dario Saric | PF/C | PHX | Torn ACL | Pre-Season | No Timetable | It is unknown when we'll see Saric take the court and we will see JaVale McGee back up Deandre Ayton. We may not see Saric at all this season. |
Zach Collins | PF/C | SAS | Ankle | Pre-Season | January-February | Will Collins ever be healthy again? As soon as he gets healthy, he injures another body part. He's looking at a January return for now and Keldon Johnson and especially Doug McDermott benefit until he's ready to go. |
E'Twaun Moore | G | ORL | Knee | Pre-Season | No Timetable | Franz Wagner has been solid to start off the year and Moore will be an injury-replacement player in the rotation when he's healthy. He's got multiple options in front of him including Terrence Ross. |