The Houston Rockets expect All-Star center Alperon Sengung to miss up to two weeks.
The team lost to the Dallas Mavericks 110-104 on Saturday night. While there is no specific timetable for his return — the team plans to re-evaluate Sangun in the coming days — head coach Ime Udoka confirmed on Monday that Sangun will likely miss two weeks to recover.
“We will evaluate him at the end of the week,” Udoka said. “Swelling, pain tolerance and mobility are needed, but may take 10-14 days.”
About a minute into Saturday night’s game at American Airlines Center, Sengon stepped up to try and battle Mavericks center Daniel Gafford for a layup. But as Sangon fell to the ground, his right ankle rolled violently. This sent him tumbling to the pitch, where he remained until play was stopped at the other end.
Sangun eventually limped off the field and was quickly ruled out of the game.
advertise
Sangun is in the middle of his career with the Rockets. The 23-year-old was selected to the All-Star Game for the first time last year and this season he is averaging a career-high 21.8 points while contributing 9 rebounds and 6.5 assists.
While this will at least briefly disrupt his dominant start to the season, and Sengun has been limited by an ankle injury in the past, it appears to be relatively short-lived. If Sengun misses the full two weeks, he will return in time for the team’s game against the San Antonio Spurs on January 20, which means he will miss eight games.
The Rockets enter Monday night’s game against the Phoenix Suns with a 21-11 record, which puts them in fifth place in the Western Conference standings. Saturday’s loss to Dallas ended a four-game winning streak.