Several playoff hopefuls are monitoring key injuries heading into the weekend.
Hornets
Charlotte rookie wing Kon Knueppel was ruled out for the second half of Friday’s road game in Orlando after spraining his right ankle late in the second quarter. The 20-year-old landed on Desmond Bane’s foot while contesting a floater, twisting the ankle on the way down. Head coach Charles Lee told reporters postgame that X-rays were negative, offering early optimism for one of the league’s leading Rookie of the Year candidates.
Rockets
Alperen Sengun is listed as questionable with left calf tightness for Houston’s home matchup against Cleveland on Saturday, according to the NBA’s official injury report. The 23-year-old center was in the same designation earlier this week before being cleared to face the Lakers. Through 26 games, Sengun is averaging 22.7 points, 9.4 rebounds, 6.8 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.0 block in 35.6 minutes, keeping him in the early All-Star conversation.
Spurs
San Antonio guard De’Aaron Fox is questionable for Saturday’s contest against Utah because of left adductor tightness, per The Athletic. Fox paced the Spurs to their third straight win on Thursday at Oklahoma City, supplying a strong first half. He has appeared in 22 consecutive games after sitting out the first eight of the season with a hamstring strain.
Source: Hoops Wire
