Southeast Notes: Bufkin, Wizards, Carrington, Magic, Heat

Hawks second-year guard Kobe Bufkin suffered a partially dislocated right shoulder, the Hawks announced Thursday. It’s the second time he’s dislocated his shoulder in the last six months, as he previously suffered the same injury ahead of Las Vegas Summer League in July.

Bufkin’s had a rough go with injuries over the course of his young career. He was limited to just 17 games in his rookie season last year after dealing with a fractured thumb and sprained toe. He averaged 4.8 points in 11.5 minutes in his healthy games.

According to the release, Bufkin is determining treatment options and an update will be provided at a later date. He’s likely to miss at least a few weeks with the injury. In the wake of his injury, guard Dyson Daniels will continue to get expanded opportunities.

In addition to not having Bufkin for Friday’s game, the Hawks are also listing Bogdan Bogdanovic as out with right hamstring tendinopathy, according to Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

We have more from the Southeast Division:

• The Wizards are once again expected to be toward the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings this season, but The Athletic’s Josh Robbins observes that there’s now a sense of purpose in the rebuild. With younger players like Bilal Coulibaly and Corey Kispert under contract for the foreseeable future, and draft picks Alex Sarr, Carlton Carrington and Kyshawn George in the building, the Wizards have a sound core. “When I first came here, there really wasn’t infrastructure,” said forward Kyle Kuzma. “Everything was on the fly, you know? [Now, there’s] much more of a sense of purpose in that department.” In a similar piece, The Washington Post’s Varun Shankar writes that 2023 hirees Michael Winger (president of Monumental Basketball) and Will Dawkins (general manager) have been crucial in this step forward. Shankar also explores potential steps forward and what players could be on the move this year.
• Rookie No. 2 overall pick Sarr made his NBA debut on Thursday against the Celtics. He finished with two points, five rebounds and two blocks. Carrington started the game next to Jordan Poole at the guard spot, while George played off the bench. According to Wizards PR (Twitter link), it’s the youngest starting lineup in franchise history.
• Carrington landed awkwardly during a layup attempt during the fourth quarter of the season-opening loss to Boston, Robbins observes (Twitter link). He was down for a while, before limping off the court to the Wizards’ locker room. He finished with three points, two assists and two blocks in his NBA debut.
• The Magic defeated the Heat in dominant fashion in their season opener, leading by as much as 32 points behind 33 from Paolo Banchero. According to Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel, the team’s three-point focus and depth were key takeaways, while Gary Harris‘s dominance from beyond the arc (made six of his nine three-point attempts for 18 points) is something to note. “It sets the tone for what the standard is with this team,” Banchero said. “Everyone was telling each other this was a hell of a game setting the tone but this is setting the tone for how we’ve got to be every night.“
• On the other side of the court, the 116-97 home loss to the Magic was a crushing blow to open the season for a Heat team that praised its new offensive system in the preseason. As Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo combined for just 12 points on 15.4% shooting in the loss. “Offensively, we have to trust some of the things that we’ve been working on in the preseason,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “It has looked a lot different than this. But obviously that’s a very good defense. That’s a top-five defense. They’re very active, long. So you have to trust what we do even more.“