Raptors point guard Delon Wright is expected to miss the next month with a dislocated shoulder, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. That timeline would put Wright on track to return just before Christmas.
Although the Raptors will be without Kyle Lowry‘s primary backup for the next several weeks, the news could have been much worse for the club. The team announced today in a press release that, after Wright visited with a specialist in New York, it was determined that the third-year guard wouldn’t require surgery on his injured shoulder. As Josh Lewenberg of TSN 1050 observes (via Twitter), Wright was sidelined for six months last year when he underwent surgery after dislocating the same shoulder.
Wright, the 20th overall pick in the 2015 draft, assumed backup point guard duties for the Raptors this season after the team traded Cory Joseph in July. The 25-year-old had been effective off the bench in his first 14 games this season, averaging 7.6 PPG and 2.6 APG with a .523 FG%.
With Wright on the shelf, the Raptors will lean on Fred VanVleet for a larger role off the bench. Norman Powell may also handle some ball-handling duties when he returns from a hip injury.