Tough blow: Jones likely lost for season
MRI reveals young center suffered torn pectoral muscle in Saturday’s loss to Detroit
DETROIT >> The Warriors’ young docile center sat on a bench and appeared relaxed. That only masked the frustration Damian Jones admittedly felt about his current circumstances.
Jones had an MRI that revealed a torn left pectoral muscle suffered in Saturday’s game against Detroit, an injury that will both require surgery and could sideline him for the remainder of the 2018-19 season. Jones plans to fly to Chicago this week for the procedure.
“We don’t know how long yet, but it’s going to be a matter of months,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr following practice on Sunday. “It’s a tough blow for him. He’s been playing so much, progressing and learning so much. We’ve been excited about his growth. It’s big setback for him and for us.”
How it’s a setback for Jones: the Warriors’ third-year center had mostly started this season while All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins rehabs his left Achilles tendon. Though Jones has struggled maintaining consistency with his fouling and decision making, the Warriors remained determined to grant him opportunities to accelerate his learning curve.
How it’s a setback for the Warriors (159): they enter today’s game against the Atlanta Hawks (5-18) without many options for their center spot. The Warriors just cleared Cousins for five-on-five drills, but they do not have a timetable yet on his return. A day after Warriors forward Draymond Green expressed optimism he would return this week from a right toe injury that has kept him out for 11 of the past 13 games, Kerr said on Sunday “it’s unlikely now he will come back on this trip.”
The Warriors have featured fourthyear forward Kevon Looney, second-year forward Jordan Bell and occasionally veteran forward Jonas Jerebko at center. The Warriors plan to recall center Marcus Derrickson from their G-League team in Santa Cruz. Will Warriors general manager Bob
Myers acquire another center in the open market?
“We’ll see. Since this just happened, we haven’t really discussed it much,” Kerr said. “We’ll check on our options and see what we want to do. I haven’t talked to Bob about it.”
The Warriors talked plenty about Jones. Though team did not make him available to speak publicly about his injury, Jones plans to address the media after his appointment with a specialist when there is presumably more clarity on his rehab and timetable.
“He’s holding up well. He’s disappointed, but he’s always a kid who has been in good spirits,” Kerr said. “He has a long career ahead of him. This has been a frustrating time for him.”
Jones suffered the injury toward the end of the third quarter of Saturday’s loss to Detroit. Jones had his left arm locked around Pistons center Andre Drummond as the two fought for a rebound. Jones absorbed contact in his left shoulder and immediately left the game. He missed the fourth quarter and then received an MRI.
Jones had also torn a pectoral muscle in his right shoulder in 2016, while bench pressing 185 pounds during a pre-draft workout with the Orlando Magic. That injury hurt Jones’ draft stock, but it did not stop the Warriors from selecting him with the No. 30 pick. He received surgery and began training around Thanksgiving.
Should that timetable hold up, Jones could return toward the end of the regular season. Or he might miss the season entirely. Either way, Kerr relayed that Warriors director of sports medicine and performance Rick Celebrini that Jones’ right shoulder will become stronger after his surgery.
“He’s always an upbeat guy,” said Looney, who offered sympathy after having two different hip surgeries. “He knows how to stay positive. It’s good to see he’s not down about it. He knows what it takes to get back.”
The 23-year-old Jones also knows the Warriors exercise their $2.3 million team option on him for next season. The Warriors also have longterm uncertainty with their center spot, given that Cousins, Bell and Looney will all be free agents next summer.
“This is not anything that will alter his career,” Kerr said. “He’s going to bounce back.”
Will Kerr be able to say the same thing about his team during its second
two-game losing streak of the season?
At least Kerr reported that Stephen Curry “feels fine” a day after his first game since missing the previous 11 with a strained left groin. The Warriors strongly expect Curry will knock off rust after posting 29.3 points on 51.2 percent shooting against Detroit. Kerr also expressed optimism Alfonzo McKinnie will play in Tuesday’s game against Cleveland after missing the previous eight because of a sore left foot. The Warriors just cleared Cousins for full-court, fiveon-five drills and plans to participate in every morning shootaround and practice this week.
“DeMarcus is making some strides,” Kerr said. “He’s looked a lot better to me the last couple of day with the intensity of his workouts.”
Kerr could not say the same thing about Green despite completing a shooting workout.
He’s doing better, but it’s a really hard injury to heal,” Kerr said. “It’s slow going.”
The Warriors have said the same
thing about their center rotation.
Bell has averaged 2.5 points on 53.5 percent shooting and 2.7 rebounds in 12.0 minutes and impressed the Warriors with his athleticism. But Bell has shown inconsistency with his decision making.
“Offensively, it’s just about being more aggressive,” Bell said. “Looney does a great job on defense. They just call so many BS fouls on him. I think he plays really good defense. I don’t know what he can do other than just stay away. With me, it’s about being more confident and be more aggressive and minimize our mistakes.”
Looney has averaged 5.8 points on 59.8 percent shooting and 5.3 rebounds in 19.0 minutes and impressed the Warriors with his defensive versatility. But Looney does not have as much impact on offense.
“We have to make sure we make the right decisions at the end of the game and doing the small things,” Looney said. “Draymond gets a lot of credit for doing the small things and the intangibles you bring on the floor.”