Injury News: Pacers Guard Likely To Miss Rest Of Season

 

On a day when the news broke that the Indiana Pacers are ready to tear it down and rebuild by trading a number of their star players, fans also got a little injury added to insult. NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski reports that guard TJ McConnell has undergone wrist surgery and could miss the rest of the season.  

Pacers guard TJ McConnell had surgery to repair torn ligaments in his right hand and is expected to miss several months, sources tell ESPN. McConnell could be lost for the rest of the season.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) December 7, 2021

Best case scenario is that McConnell will miss "several months". But if the team is out of the playoff hunt, as now expected, it's unlikely they'd bring him back in March or April. 

The 6-foot-1 point guard was signed to a 4-year, $34M deal in the offseason, and has been counted on as a key member of the rotation. He's averaged 8.4 points and 4.8 assists while shooting over 50% from the floor, in 24 minutes per game, mostly off the bench. 

He went down on his hand just three minutes into last Wednesday's game against the Atlanta Hawks, and his wrist has been in a cast ever since, while team medical staff determined the best course of action. 

Caris LaVert and Brad Wanamaker will likely pick up most of McConnell's minutes. But how much longer LaVert, or pretty much anyone else on the roster will be around remains to be seen, as the Pacers have indicated that they are ready to blow it up. 

It's not known if the news of the seriousness of McConnell's injury was the final straw for the Indiana front office's decision to hit the trade market. 

Photo Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports