The Charlotte Hornets will be without another major contributor for the next few weeks. The team announced that prized offseason signing Gordon Hayward, who has looked like his former All-Star self since heading to Charlotte, will miss at least the next four weeks due to a right foot sprain that he suffered on Friday night.
“The injury was sustained during the second quarter of last night’s win over the Indiana Pacers,” the team said in a release. “The initial diagnosis was confirmed via a physician’s exam and studies today in Indianapolis. He will be reevaluated in approximately four weeks and further updates on his status will be provided as appropriate.”
Beyond the fact that losing Hayward for any amount of time would be a tough break for the team, this is especially brutal news following the news that LaMelo Ball may be out for the rest of the year with a wrist fracture. The team currently sits in fourth place in the Eastern Conference at 25-23, but are only a game and a half up on the 7-seed and a potential spot in the Eastern Conference play-in tournament.
Hayward has started all 44 games in which he’s appeared for the team this season, averaging 19.6 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and 1.2 steals in 34 minutes per game.