Duke shooting guard Frank Jackson was the first pick of the second round of the NBA Draft — he would have gone in the first round, but a foot surgery he had the month before the draft had him fall to the second round (where the contracts are no longer guaranteed). Still, the Pelicans liked him enough to trade for him.
Now Jackson needs a second surgery on the foot, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Sources: New Orleans rookie guard Frank Jackson broke his right foot and will undergo surgery Friday. He had procedure on foot in May, too.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 31, 2017
Obviously, this is not good. We don’t know the details of the kind of fracture and where in the foot, but he’s going to miss training camp for sure as this heals, and part (maybe all) of the season. This is a blow to the Pelicans who could use all the shooters they can get to go around Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins.
Going forward, the question is will this rob Jackson of some of his athleticism? Part of his attraction to NBA teams is Jackson is an explosive athlete with a 42 inch vertical, and he used that create space. He shot 39.5 percent from three at Duke last season, but he had more highlights blowing by the close out guy and getting to the rim and finishing with authority. Will he still be able to do that?
We may have to wait a while to see.