Wizards guard Delon Wright is expected to miss three weeks or more with a sprained left knee. Wright exited the Charlotte Hornets matchup after contact with an opponent on the floor during the fourth quarter.
“There was an injury to his knee,” Unseld Jr. said postgame. “I don’t know to what extent. It was a play, I think, someone stepped on his foot and there was an impact to the side of the knee to some degree. It raised a little bit of concern for him so he didn’t feel comfortable continuing.”
During the team’s practice on Saturday, Coach Wes Unseld Jr. didn’t have much more information but confirmed his knee was being evaluated. He also noted Wright would not travel to Brooklyn on Sunday or Toronto on Monday for the Wizards next two games.
Now that the extent of the injury has been revealed, the Wizards released a statement stating that his knee injury will be treated conservatively and will be re-evaluated in three weeks.
After Wright’s departure in Friday’s game, everything went downhill for the Wizards as they let their lead slip away in the final four minutes of regulation. When asked about the rotations late in the fourth quarter, Unseld Jr. mentioned that Wright absence impacted his ability to right the ship.
“I was going to make a substitution but obviously when D. Wright went out, it kind of changed the pattern a little bit,” Unseld Jr. stated. “We were trying to play offense/defense, and get a little more size in there but there were fouls/free throws, and we couldn’t quite navigate all of that.”
Wright also suffered an injury last season that took him out for several weeks. Similar to last night, the Wizards were never able to replace his defensive effort. This injury definitely changes the dynamics of a Wizards team that desperately needs to find a rhythm.