Week 2 Injury Watch

TEAM INJURIES

Atlanta Hawks T.J. Warren (Foot), Adam Mokoka (Concussion), Spencer Dinwiddie (Knee)

Danual House is back from injury this week which will help the Hawks, but they will be without Dinwiddie all year and Warren for an extended period, both tough breaks. Mokoka is in the concussion protocol still but he's only a 2way guy anyway, so the likelihood is he wouldn't be in the rotation.

Brooklyn Nets Caris LeVert (Kidney), Troy Brown (Illness), Nemanja Bjelica (Back)

LeVert caught a huge break with a recent medical which may have saved his life, but he remains out for the foreseeable future because of it. Brown too is still on the shelf in the Covid protocol and Bjelica join these 2 on the sidelines this week which will mean the Nets will need to find another floor spacer for the week.

Boston Celtics Chris Silva (Hip), Jonas Valanciunas (Illness), George Hill (Thumb), Payton Pritchard (Knee)

Westbrook is debuting for the year this week after being on the shelf last week and the Celtics really need him firing. Unfortunately, George Hill and Payton Pritchard are the cost of his return. Val remains on the sidelines in the Covid protocol, which has been an extended one for him, and they'll be itching to have him return ASAP.

Charlotte Hornets Would you believe it, even in a Covid world the Hornets are a clean bill of health after welcoming back Frank Jackson...who will promptly not play a minute.

Chicago Bulls Meyers Leonard (Shoulder), Patrick McCaw (Knee), P.J. Dozier (Hamstring)

The Bulls are welcoming back a swathe of guys this week but the important one is Al Horford who will help the team a lot, while also finally allowing them to showcase to the contenders that yes, he can and will still play so come get him! Leonard and McCaw remain out, but wouldn't move the bar greatly and Dozier unfortunately joins them.

Cleveland Cavaliers Jay Scrubb (Foot), Kris Dunn (Ankle), Zach Collins (Ankle), Jaren Jackson Jnr (Knee), Lamar Stevens (Abdominal)

Bamba returns this week which is a nice boost for the team waiting for JJJ to debut as the prized piece from the Lebron trade. He unfortunately is still on the shelf though and the only guy to join the injured crew tis week is Lamar Stevens. There's a foot training issue going on in Cleveland. Need a new foot guy.

Dallas Mavericks Wendell Carter Jr (Thigh)

No changes in Dallas. They were missing Carter last week and they're missing him this week still. Is he ever healthy? If he ever gets there, he'll finally show some of that potential everyone keeps grasping at.

Denver Nuggets Jonathan Isaac (Knee), Greg Whittington (Knee)

No changes in Denver either. Isaac is done for the year and they've already been awarded the DPE. Whittington is inconsequential and wouldn't move the bar even if he returned.

Detroit Pistons Alen Smailagic (Knee), Klay Thompson (Knee), Derrick Favors (Back)

With Klay done for the year again, this time in Detroit, you need a lot of luck with injuries otherwise. So naturally Justin's lack of luck has shone through again and now Derrick is on the shelf too. The Pistons have been moving and shaking and they'll love to get a run at it with Derrick back hopefully next week.

Golden State Warriors Grant Riller (Knee), Bogdan Bogdanovic (Knee), Norman Powell (Quad)

Ouch, down goes Norman Powell who was one of the better acquisitions for the Warriors in recent memory. He joins Bogdan who remains out and Riller too. They get back Elleby but he won't make the rotation. Hopefully they can get their wings back soon.

Houston Rockets Maxi Kleber (Illness)

Tyler Herro is back! A very welcomed boost for the Rockets this week, though maybe getting Kleber back would have been better for them needing the big man. That said, Herro is sure to shoot some lights out and it's a shooters world this year.

Indiana Pacers Matthew Dellavedova (Concussion), Vincent Poirier (Illness), C.J. McCollum (Foot)

The Pacers are off to a blistering start, despite missing CJ and going to be missing him for a while. This week they get Powell back which will bolster down low and no new bodies were added to the list of Delly and Poirier. All looking good in Indy, particularly if they keep winning BEFORE getting CJ back!

LA Clippers Jahmius Ramsey (Groin), Nick Richards (Ankle), OG Anunoby (Calf)

The Clips get their big name back this week, Tatum, in. That makes all the difference to an already loaded line up and all they gave up in return with OG and Richards. OG will be missed, but is more than covered by the return of Tatum. Hopefully OG is back sooner rather than later.

LA Lakers Kostas Antetokounmpo (Knee), Elijah Hughes (Ankle)

The Lakers only had to wait a week to now see the debut of their prized big man acquisition. No, not James Wiseman. Christian Wood. He's back after sitting for the protocol and so is rookie Aaron Nesmith, set to make his NLL debut. No new guys to report injured this week which is nice as Kostas and Hughes both wouldn't be in the rotation anyway.

Memphis Grizzlies Al-Farouq Aminu (Knee), Karl-Anthony Towns (Wrist), Deni Avdija (Illness), Terrance Ferguson (Personal), Reggie Bullock (Neck)

Dorian Finney-Smith and Austin Rivers return this week to bolster the team depth, but Towns remains out, and that's the big story. But wait, the depth gets a further hit by instead trading out Deni, Ferguson and Bullock for only the return of Finney-Smith and Rivers. It's a cruel world.

Miami Heat Ty Jerome (Ankle), Andre Iguodala (Neck)

Only one mover this week in Miami. Jerome is now joined with the veteran Iguodala who is reporting neck spasms, but probably just wanted a break. One week in was enough for the old guy. It won't change too much in Miami, other than one less week to showcase him for week 9.

Milwaukee Bucks Killian Hayes (Hip), Romeo Langford (Wrist), Jusuf Nurkic (Wrist)

The Bucks welcome back Josh Richardson this week which gives their already deep wing rotation another kick up. Like they need it ey! No new injuries, but Nurkic remains out long term, as does Hayes and Langford is forever on the trade block and not playing regardless.

Minnesota Timberwolves Chuma Okeke (Bruise), Kevin Love (Calf), Avery Bradley (Illness), Maurice Harkless (Thigh)

Tacko has entered the building. Look for the tree to play this week as Jonathan was hoping he could last week. They say goodbye to Harkless though for now and are still waiting on the perpetually injured Kevin Love. Avery Bradley remains out too which is a shame for the depth and they are yet to see the debut of Chuma.

New Orleans Pelicans Jarrett Culver (Ankle)

Well this is some great news in New Orleans. They have had to see Jarrett Culver sit out, but they welcome back finally John Wall to make his NO debut. Not only that, they get their shooting big man in Kornet back and the 2* (may not be 2) time 6th man of the year in Keita Bates-Diop also. Much much needed boost for the team that hopes to make the playoffs this year.

New York Knicks Mike Scott (Knee), Will Magnay (Personal), Juan Hernangomez (Illness), Donovan Mitchell (Concussion), Goran Dragic (Groin)

Oh boy, that's a tough one for New York. Bol Bol time? Both Donovan Mitchell and Goran Dragic go out in the one week to add to the devastating loss of Thon Maker. The Knicks are looking in strife! Hopefully Maker comes back soon or there could be real trouble. Oh, and Mitchell and Dragic too.

Oklahoma City Thunder Marquese Chriss (Leg), Jontay Porter (Knee)

Chriss is done for the year most likely, which was a shame for OKC who got him as a key bench big. Luckily they have other bigs. This week they welcome back Hassan Whiteside and Frank Ntilikina which completes their rotation in it's entirety. Yes, they're effectively full strength this week!

Orlando Magic Nicolas Claxton (Knee), Derrick White (Toe), DaQuan Jeffries (Ankle), Thomas Bryant (Knee), Patrick Beverley (Knee)

If it wasn't enough that they were missing Claxton, White, Jeffries and Bryant (long term) already, they now look to miss Patrick Beverley for at least a week too. The Magic are pushing it up hill at the minute and really would like to get some bodies back. At least White looks to be only a week away now.

Philadelphia 76ers Damian Jones (Illness)

The 76ers remain at full strength. Yeah, Damian Jones is out, but it's Damian Jones. He shouldn't be cracking the rotation while Gobert, Dwight and Theis are healthy anyway so the 76ers will roll on!

Phoenix Suns Michael Carter-Williams (Foot), Kevin Durant (Achilles), Jimmy Butler (Illness)

1 of 3 ain't bad? Kyle Lowry returns from the Suns big 3 and they'll hope he can make a real positive difference. But, KD and Butler remain on the shelf for another week and it's really bad luck for the Suns to start the year. They'll bounce back hard soon though, just wait.

Portland Trail Blazers Anzejs Pasecniks (Waived in NBA), Naz Reid (Wrist)

Naz Reid has been balling thus far in the NBA but he's out for a week now which is unfortunate. He joins Pasecniks who is still waiting for a call from someone, anyone! The Blazers are at pretty full strength.

San Antonio Spurs Anthony Davis (Quad)

Both your 2 way players return, but dang...you lose the MVP. The Spurs started much slower than anyone thought they would and having Davis sit for the 2nd week of the year isn't going to help, surely. They have veterans to fill the hole as such, but you can't replace Davis.

Sacramento Kings Trevor Ariza (Personal), Ishmael Smith (Illness), Robert Covington (Concussion)

Ariza remains out, and no one is quite sure why, but he's joined by Ish and Covington this week. Just when Covington is being showcased to the contenders! The Kings will miss these 2 for sure, but they probably wouldn't have moved the bar much anyhow unfortunately. They will come out of the other side of the pain eventually though!

Toronto Raptors Cameron Payne (Foot)

No injuries at all last week, but now Cameron Payne is sitting. He probably wasn't in the rotation anyway? The main guys are all fit and firing in Toronto.

Utah Jazz Markelle Fultz (Knee), Justise Winslow (Hip), Trent Forrest (Illness), Devin Booker (Hamstring)

Fultz and Winslow remain out, Fultz is done for the year of course, but Winslow will be back. Unfortunately they lose their superstar in Booker this week which severely dampens their outlook. How to fill that void, Dillon Brooks?

Washington Wizards Dario Saric (Illness), Jared Dudley (Calf)

Chandler Hutchison makes his return this week, and likely his debut. Saric and Dudley remain out, Saric would likely have played a role but Hutchison might now steal his role if he succeeds on return. The Wizards are looking decently healthy otherwise.

TEAM	INJURIES
	T.J. Warren (Foot), Adam Mokoka (Concussion), Spencer Dinwiddie (Knee) Danual House is back from injury this week which will help the Hawks, but they will be without Dinwiddie all year and Warren for an extended period, both tough breaks. Mokoka is in the concussion protocol still but he's only a 2way guy anyway, so the likelihood is he wouldn't be in the rotation.
	Caris LeVert (Kidney), Troy Brown (Illness), Nemanja Bjelica (Back) LeVert caught a huge break with a recent medical which may have saved his life, but he remains out for the foreseeable future because of it. Brown too is still on the shelf in the Covid protocol and Bjelica join these 2 on the sidelines this week which will mean the Nets will need to find another floor spacer for the week.
	Chris Silva (Hip), Jonas Valanciunas (Illness), George Hill (Thumb), Payton Pritchard (Knee) Westbrook is debuting for the year this week after being on the shelf last week and the Celtics really need him firing. Unfortunately, George Hill and Payton Pritchard are the cost of his return. Val remains on the sidelines in the Covid protocol, which has been an extended one for him, and they'll be itching to have him return ASAP.
	Would you believe it, even in a Covid world the Hornets are a clean bill of health after welcoming back Frank Jackson...who will promptly not play a minute.
	Meyers Leonard (Shoulder), Patrick McCaw (Knee), P.J. Dozier (Hamstring) The Bulls are welcoming back a swathe of guys this week but the important one is Al Horford who will help the team a lot, while also finally allowing them to showcase to the contenders that yes, he can and will still play so come get him! Leonard and McCaw remain out, but wouldn't move the bar greatly and Dozier unfortunately joins them.
	Jay Scrubb (Foot), Kris Dunn (Ankle), Zach Collins (Ankle), Jaren Jackson Jnr (Knee), Lamar Stevens (Abdominal) Bamba returns this week which is a nice boost for the team waiting for JJJ to debut as the prized piece from the Lebron trade. He unfortunately is still on the shelf though and the only guy to join the injured crew tis week is Lamar Stevens. There's a foot training issue going on in Cleveland. Need a new foot guy.
	Wendell Carter Jr (Thigh) No changes in Dallas. They were missing Carter last week and they're missing him this week still. Is he ever healthy? If he ever gets there, he'll finally show some of that potential everyone keeps grasping at.
	Jonathan Isaac (Knee), Greg Whittington (Knee) No changes in Denver either. Isaac is done for the year and they've already been awarded the DPE. Whittington is inconsequential and wouldn't move the bar even if he returned.
	Alen Smailagic (Knee), Klay Thompson (Knee), Derrick Favors (Back) With Klay done for the year again, this time in Detroit, you need a lot of luck with injuries otherwise. So naturally Justin's lack of luck has shone through again and now Derrick is on the shelf too. The Pistons have been moving and shaking and they'll love to get a run at it with Derrick back hopefully next week.
	Grant Riller (Knee), Bogdan Bogdanovic (Knee), Norman Powell (Quad) Ouch, down goes Norman Powell who was one of the better acquisitions for the Warriors in recent memory. He joins Bogdan who remains out and Riller too. They get back Elleby but he won't make the rotation. Hopefully they can get their wings back soon.
	Maxi Kleber (Illness) Tyler Herro is back! A very welcomed boost for the Rockets this week, though maybe getting Kleber back would have been better for them needing the big man. That said, Herro is sure to shoot some lights out and it's a shooters world this year.
	Matthew Dellavedova (Concussion), Vincent Poirier (Illness), C.J. McCollum (Foot) The Pacers are off to a blistering start, despite missing CJ and going to be missing him for a while. This week they get Powell back which will bolster down low and no new bodies were added to the list of Delly and Poirier. All looking good in Indy, particularly if they keep winning BEFORE getting CJ back!
	Jahmius Ramsey (Groin), Nick Richards (Ankle), OG Anunoby (Calf) The Clips get their big name back this week, Tatum, in. That makes all the difference to an already loaded line up and all they gave up in return with OG and Richards. OG will be missed, but is more than covered by the return of Tatum. Hopefully OG is back sooner rather than later.
	Kostas Antetokounmpo (Knee), Elijah Hughes (Ankle) The Lakers only had to wait a week to now see the debut of their prized big man acquisition. No, not James Wiseman. Christian Wood. He's back after sitting for the protocol and so is rookie Aaron Nesmith, set to make his NLL debut. No new guys to report injured this week which is nice as Kostas and Hughes both wouldn't be in the rotation anyway.
	Al-Farouq Aminu (Knee), Karl-Anthony Towns (Wrist), Deni Avdija (Illness), Terrance Ferguson (Personal), Reggie Bullock (Neck) Dorian Finney-Smith and Austin Rivers return this week to bolster the team depth, but Towns remains out, and that's the big story. But wait, the depth gets a further hit by instead trading out Deni, Ferguson and Bullock for only the return of Finney-Smith and Rivers. It's a cruel world.
	Ty Jerome (Ankle), Andre Iguodala (Neck) Only one mover this week in Miami. Jerome is now joined with the veteran Iguodala who is reporting neck spasms, but probably just wanted a break. One week in was enough for the old guy. It won't change too much in Miami, other than one less week to showcase him for week 9.
	Killian Hayes (Hip), Romeo Langford (Wrist), Jusuf Nurkic (Wrist) The Bucks welcome back Josh Richardson this week which gives their already deep wing rotation another kick up. Like they need it ey! No new injuries, but Nurkic remains out long term, as does Hayes and Langford is forever on the trade block and not playing regardless.
	Chuma Okeke (Bruise), Kevin Love (Calf), Avery Bradley (Illness), Maurice Harkless (Thigh) Tacko has entered the building. Look for the tree to play this week as Jonathan was hoping he could last week. They say goodbye to Harkless though for now and are still waiting on the perpetually injured Kevin Love. Avery Bradley remains out too which is a shame for the depth and they are yet to see the debut of Chuma.
	Jarrett Culver (Ankle) Well this is some great news in New Orleans. They have had to see Jarrett Culver sit out, but they welcome back finally John Wall to make his NO debut. Not only that, they get their shooting big man in Kornet back and the 2* (may not be 2) time 6th man of the year in Keita Bates-Diop also. Much much needed boost for the team that hopes to make the playoffs this year.
	Mike Scott (Knee), Will Magnay (Personal), Juan Hernangomez (Illness), Donovan Mitchell (Concussion), Goran Dragic (Groin) Oh boy, that's a tough one for New York. Bol Bol time? Both Donovan Mitchell and Goran Dragic go out in the one week to add to the devastating loss of Thon Maker. The Knicks are looking in strife! Hopefully Maker comes back soon or there could be real trouble. Oh, and Mitchell and Dragic too.
	Marquese Chriss (Leg), Jontay Porter (Knee) Chriss is done for the year most likely, which was a shame for OKC who got him as a key bench big. Luckily they have other bigs. This week they welcome back Hassan Whiteside and Frank Ntilikina which completes their rotation in it's entirety. Yes, they're effectively full strength this week!
	Nicolas Claxton (Knee), Derrick White (Toe), DaQuan Jeffries (Ankle), Thomas Bryant (Knee), Patrick Beverley (Knee) If it wasn't enough that they were missing Claxton, White, Jeffries and Bryant (long term) already, they now look to miss Patrick Beverley for at least a week too. The Magic are pushing it up hill at the minute and really would like to get some bodies back. At least White looks to be only a week away now.
	Damian Jones (Illness) The 76ers remain at full strength. Yeah, Damian Jones is out, but it's Damian Jones. He shouldn't be cracking the rotation while Gobert, Dwight and Theis are healthy anyway so the 76ers will roll on!
	Michael Carter-Williams (Foot), Kevin Durant (Achilles), Jimmy Butler (Illness) 1 of 3 ain't bad? Kyle Lowry returns from the Suns big 3 and they'll hope he can make a real positive difference. But, KD and Butler remain on the shelf for another week and it's really bad luck for the Suns to start the year. They'll bounce back hard soon though, just wait.
	Anzejs Pasecniks (Waived in NBA), Naz Reid (Wrist) Naz Reid has been balling thus far in the NBA but he's out for a week now which is unfortunate. He joins Pasecniks who is still waiting for a call from someone, anyone! The Blazers are at pretty full strength.
	Anthony Davis (Quad) Both your 2 way players return, but dang...you lose the MVP. The Spurs started much slower than anyone thought they would and having Davis sit for the 2nd week of the year isn't going to help, surely. They have veterans to fill the hole as such, but you can't replace Davis.
	Trevor Ariza (Personal), Ishmael Smith (Illness), Robert Covington (Concussion) Ariza remains out, and no one is quite sure why, but he's joined by Ish and Covington this week. Just when Covington is being showcased to the contenders! The Kings will miss these 2 for sure, but they probably wouldn't have moved the bar much anyhow unfortunately. They will come out of the other side of the pain eventually though!
	Cameron Payne (Foot) No injuries at all last week, but now Cameron Payne is sitting. He probably wasn't in the rotation anyway? The main guys are all fit and firing in Toronto.
	Markelle Fultz (Knee), Justise Winslow (Hip), Trent Forrest (Illness), Devin Booker (Hamstring) Fultz and Winslow remain out, Fultz is done for the year of course, but Winslow will be back. Unfortunately they lose their superstar in Booker this week which severely dampens their outlook. How to fill that void, Dillon Brooks?
	Dario Saric (Illness), Jared Dudley (Calf) Chandler Hutchison makes his return this week, and likely his debut. Saric and Dudley remain out, Saric would likely have played a role but Hutchison might now steal his role if he succeeds on return. The Wizards are looking decently healthy otherwise.