Minnesota Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels will be placed in a cast and ruled out indefinitely with a fractured hand, the team announced on Monday.
The injury occurred at the halftime break of the team’s 113-108 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans in what was its regular season finale on Sunday. McDaniels was seen punching a wall, which caused the hand fracture.
McDaniels put together a career-best year in his third NBA season, averaging 12.1 points per game on nearly 40% shooting from beyond the arc. He’s also regarded as one of the better on-ball defenders in the league.
The 22-year-old wing will miss the team’s crucial play-in contest against the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night, and likely any subsequent playoff games to follow.
The Timberwolves already announced that they’d be without Rudy Gobert for Tuesday’s tilt, with the Frenchman set to serve a one-game suspension after punching teammate Kyle Anderson in a timeout just minutes before McDaniels threw the hand-breaking punch against the wall.
Should Minnesota fail to beat the Lakers, it will have to play the winner of the Pelicans and Oklahoma City Thunder in a do-or-die contest for the No. 8 seed on Friday.
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