The hits keep coming for Marvin Bagley and the Sacramento Kings. Bagley left the court holding his left hand late in the second quarter of the Kings’ 122-116 loss to the Charlotte Hornets on Monday.
Results of an x-ray at the Spectrum Center revealed a fracture of the fourth metacarpal in Bagley’s shooting hand. The team has yet to release a time table for his recovery, but an early estimate from players with similar injuries is a minimum of 4-6 weeks.
“I really feel for him, he’s put in so much hard work this year,” coach Luke Walton said. “He’s continued to make big strides and he was putting together a heck of a game tonight.”
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Bagley finished the game with 12 points and three rebounds in 16 minutes of action, but wasn’t able to be with his team as they stumbled down the stretch.
In his third NBA season, Bagley was starting to find his rhythm for the Kings. He came into Monday averaging 13.9 points and 7.6 rebounds in 26 minutes per game as Sacramento’s starting power forward.
“It sucks, because he’s been playing really well, he’s been getting better throughout the year,” Tyrese Haliburton said. “It sucks and that’s the most important thing. I’m gutted for him. The guy’s been playing really well, works his butt off. It’s unfortunate.”
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Bagley played a total of 13 games last season, but before the injury against the Hornets, he had stayed relatively healthy this season. Through 39 games, the 22-year-old had started 37 games, including Monday’s game in Charlotte.
“We’re going to miss him out on the floor with us, we feel for him, but that’s what being part of a team is about,” Walton added. “We’ll be there for him and we need to find a way to get some other players to step up and try to fill what he was doing for us.”
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The third-year pro is eligible for an extension this summer, although he likely needed to show that he could stay on the court this season in order to land a huge commitment from the Kings.
With Bagley once again set to miss a large chunk of the season, Walton is going to have to get creative with his already limited rotation. Veteran Nemanja Bjelica is likely to get more time at the four, but Walton also has an opportunity to shake his rotation up, including the possibility of starting Haliburton in a small ball lineup.