An MRI has revealed that Timberwolves power forward Jaden McDaniels sprained his left ankle late in last night’s 149-139 victory over the Spurs, the team announced in a press statement.
Minnesota indicated that McDaniels will be shelved indefinitely as he recovers from the injury. The Timberwolves will reevaluate him in two weeks.
Across 67 contests, the 6’8″ forward has been a key role player on both sides of the floor for the upstart Timberwolves, averaging 9.4 PPG, 4.3 RPG and 1.1 APG in 26.1 MPG. McDaniels is connecting on 45.9% of his field goal looks and 80% of his charity stripe attempts.
With a 40-30 record, Minnesota currently occupies the seventh seed of the Western Conference. As the Wolves look to make their first postseason appearance since 2018 (and only their second since 2004), they could look to supplement the loss of McDaniels in the short term.
Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that Minnesota will explore adding a free agent big man via a 10-day contract, something that had already been considered a possibility.
WCS is probably next but damn play Nathan Knight first