Minnesota Timberwolves talisman Anthony Edwards faces around two months on the sidelines because of arthroscopic surgery on his right knee. His absence is just one chapter in an injury epidemic sweeping the NBA, one that has dealt several teams a heavy blow at the very start of the regular season. The Houston Rockets were without first-choice centre Alperen Sengun for their meeting with the Milwaukee Bucks because of lower-back pain. The Miami Heat have selection problems too, with Italian forward Simone Fontecchio ruled out of the game against the Atlanta Hawks through illness. In Utah, the frontcourt situation is critical: Lauri Markkanen is a doubt with a right wrist sprain, while Jaren Jackson Jr. has torn the MCL in his right knee and will be re-evaluated in six weeks.
The injury list keeps growing. The Oklahoma City Thunder's rotation has been badly thinned ahead of their game against the Dallas Mavericks, with Belgian guard Ajay Mitchell's ankle sprain adding to their problems. Dallas, by contrast, can point to modest progress: Santi Aldama, recovering from knee surgery, and Tarik Biberovic, who has a heel problem, have both been upgraded to questionable. Yet the Mavericks remain without Sergio de Larrea because of a right knee sprain, while Ivica Zubac and Kristaps Porzingis still head the long list of sidelined European imports.
