Indiana Pacers Forward TJ Warren To Foot Surgery And Miss Time

Just after the Indiana Pacers defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers Thursday to advance to the Eastern Conference leading 4-1, fans of the team received devastating news. The team announced that surgery will begin on TJ Warren to repair a small navicular pressure fracture in his left leg.

Warren, according to the press release, “will be out in the end and updates will be provided as needed. ”It could be a long time.

This is a huge loss for the Pacers. While Warren had been playing a hobby this season and clearly not 100% healthy, he was still an effective player. In four goals, the scoring averaged 15.5 points per game on a shooting of nearly 53%. Despite being injured, he was helping the team to win.

“He’s always ready to go,” Pacers Head Coach Nate Bjorkgren said of Warren after his team won on December 26th. “It looked great tonight. He was getting to the paint, getting a beat, [and] get to the lure line. ”

After a rough first performance of the campaign in which Warren was clearly a limp and just scored five points, he kicked back in a big way for his team. He scored 23 points in his next round, and scored 17 points in each of the following two games. It took him a while to get a grip on game pace, but it looked like Warren was starting to get comfortable.

“[I’m] just trying to get in shape, ”Warren said earlier in the season. “I missed training camp, I lost a lot of time. [I’m] just trying to shape myself, getting back in rhythm. ”

“I feel like I’m still far away,” he said. That was obvious from watching him move. Even as he gained a reputation for playing in games, it was clear that his leg was bothering him. Now, he needs surgery.

As a result, the Pacers need to change. In the three preseason games that Warren did not play, as well as one regular season game, Aaron Holiday started in his place. Holidays are usually a combo guard and not a move, but the Pacers are able to get away with starting the youngster alongside Malcolm Brogdon and Victor Oladipo. With that trip on the floor this season, the Pacers have outscored opponents by 17 points in 20 minutes of action.

“I think Aaron did a good job in camp,” Bjorkgren said throughout the season. “[I’m] looking for great things out of this year. ”

In addition to this, Oladipo continues to sit out one tournament when there are matches on consecutive nights, so there is a chance that both Warren and Oladipo will miss out on time at at the same time. When that happens, it’s not clear who the fifth starter will be, but Doug McDermott and Justin Holiday are the most likely candidates. Justin Holiday filled in as a starter twice during the preseason.

Nevertheless, the starting five should start clicking, even without Warren. But there will be nights when the Pacers need a jolt, and they will have one less creator on the court who can deliver one without it.

One ripple effect of the injury is that the bench hits. Aaron Holiday will be available for fewer minutes with the second unit since he starts, so Bjorkgren will either have to shorten his turn or give minutes to a less determined player.

The coach has gone down both tracks this season. Against the Boston Celtics on Dec. 27, with Oladipo out, Bjorkgren really followed in his footsteps and played only eight lads. When the Pacers played the Cavaliers on Dec. 31, Warren was unavailable, but Indiana was still going nine deep. That night, Kelan Martin won his first round of the season – he played 11 minutes off the bench for the blue and gold.

Martin is one of the few additions to the Pacers this season. The team entered him into a one-year contract, with partial warranty, during this time. It was not added for immediate addition.

But it might be necessary if Bjorkgren still calls out his number with Warren. “I like the way it competes, and it’s just been ready all the time,” Bjorkgren said of Martin. “I love his competitiveness. He’s playing hard. ”

Martin is not the only reserved option for Indiana if the team continues to play nine boys. Edmond Sumner may also be able to grab a few minutes of playing time. Sumner has made a huge impact on the team in recent seasons and has shown a wide variety of skills. Bjorkgren has not yet used it in an important position, but history suggests that Sumner can provide value when asked.

In addition, in a few weeks, guard / shield Jeremy Lamb will return from a torn ACL. “Best of all, it’s on the court between mid and late January,” Pacers Basketball Operations President Kevin Pritchard told the guard.

Although Lamb will be less effective after a serious knee injury, his size and ability to self-create will immediately set him back on his return. The question is where. With Warren out, the 6’5 ”Lamb could start a small step forward, but if Aaron Holiday keeps the idea as a starting point that idea can be unbelievable. If he doesn’t start, Lamb will definitely replace Martin with the second unit and will make a significant contribution to the reserve groups.

Even if the Pacers have options to make Warren’s loss so bad, his injury is still very much for the team. In last season’s NBA bubble, Warren showed what he can do at his best. He went on a historic scoring run, and when he joined the strong on-ball defense, he was one of the best players in the entire NBA. His peak as a player is pretty high, and losing that threat will make the Pacers more predictable and easier to hit.

Warren’s timeline for returning to public action is yet to come; Adrian Wojnarowski de ESPN statement that Warren “expects to miss much of the regular season.” Wojnarowski also noted that Warren had a weight loss in his leg while playing for the Phoenix Suns in 2016, so the 27-year-old has a history of weight issues in his legs. It’s important to remember that Warren’s 2016 fracture was in his right leg while his current injury is on the other side.

The Pacers have only played in one game without Warren this season, beating the Cavaliers 119-99. Last season, the team went 3-3 in the half-dozen games they played without. With a deep roster, Indiana should be able to recover without TJ Warren for a while. But the squad will be at a low level, and winning games will be a bigger challenge for the Pacers until he returns.