The injuries are piling up around the league and the Pacers added another player to their own growing list: Ivica Zubac, who left the Pacers game against the Nets in the first half with a sprained left ankle.
The injury happened on a rebound where Kelly Oubre and Zubac both went for the ball and the center landed on Oubre’s foot. Rick Carlisle told media after the game that X-Rays on his ankle came back negative but there’s already swelling and it’s unlikely that he’ll play tomorrow in Milwaukee.
“Hopefully it’ll be a day-to-day thing, but you never know,” Carlisle said after the game according to Circle City Spin. “Maybe he’ll feel a lot better in the morning. It’s hard to say. I think it’s probably unlikely. But I talked to him after the game and he said, ‘I’ll be alright.’”
The same ankle is what caused Zubac to miss a lot of games both before and after he was acquired in a trade by the Pacers last season; the team will be hoping it’s more mild than last year so he can continue to gain chemistry on the court with his new teammates in a new system.
Jay Huff started the second half for the Pacers in place Zu and played well finishing with 12 points and 3 blocks, contributing in the ways you would hope to see: 3s, rim protection, and reverse dunks. Both Huff and Larry Nance are in line for bigger roles while Zubac’s ankle heals.
Elsewhere with the Pacers injury updates: Ben Sheppard’s left meniscus tear will keep him out for weeks and TJ McConnell is still out without much of a timeline with a hamstring strain while Johnny Furphy is also out as he continues to rehab his ACL injury.
-#31-
