Spurs’ LaMarcus Aldridge Out For the Season

LaMarcus Aldridge, one of the key players of the San Antonio Spurs, will miss the remainder of the season, according to the franchise from Texas.

They revealed this information today, adding that Aldridge had a surgery that demands a long procedure, which automatically means that the power forward won’t be eligible for the upcoming season restart.

“LaMarcus Aldridge underwent an arthroscopic subacromial decompression and rotator cuff debridement on his right shoulder and will miss the remainder of the 2019-20 season. The successful procedure was performed by Dr. Daniel Cooper in Dallas, Texas, on April 24,” stated in Spurs’ statement on their website.

The Spurs today announced that LaMarcus Aldridge had a surgical procedure performed on his right shoulder, which will cause him to miss the remainder of the 2019-20 NBA season.

MORE: https://t.co/wFM31GwLjq pic.twitter.com/kwfI6hVdXU

— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) June 8, 2020

This is a massive blow for head coach Gregg Popovich whose team is not ins a very good position before the start of the playoffs. Right now, the Spurs are 12th in the West with 27 wins and 36 losses, four games behind the Memphis Grizzles on the eighth spot.

They will be participating in the restart, along with the Blazers, Pelicans, Kings, and the Suns, but after this news, their chances are pretty low.

Aldridge was one of the pivotal pieces of the Spurs’ team, and was averaging 18.9 points and 7.4 boards in 33.1 minutes on the court in 53 regular-season games. Apart from these numbers, Aldridge posted 49.3% FG, and 82.7% from the free throws.

Without a doubt, his influence on the team’s performance was superb. The only other player who could be considered in his rank is DeMar DeRozan, whose numbers are similar. Still, in terms of the importance to the team, there is no doubt that Aldridge has a more significant place in Popovich’s vision.

What is also interesting is that the Spurs kept this information away from the eyes of the public and that they revealed it today, even though it took place on April 24.

This is something claimed by Tim MacMahon from the ESPN. who revealed the news on his Twitter account.

“The procedure was performed April 24, per the Spurs, so they’ve known for weeks that they wouldn’t have LaMarcus Aldridge when the season resumed.”

His injury occurred on February 21st, against the Jazzers, and after playing one more match, he would miss all of them but the last one before the suspension of the activities.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muVH9r2jfL0

In October 2016, the second pick from the 2006 NBA Draft signed a three-year $72.3 million extension, and right now, he is set to earn around $24 million.

In his 1003 games so far since joining the NBA, Aldridge scored 19.5 points and 8.3 boards with 49.1% shooting from the field. Without a doubt, he is one of the best players in the league.

The 34-year old veteran participated in seven All-Star matches, and is a five-time NBA All-Team, twice first, and three times second.

This is by far the worst season since coming to Texas, and apparently, the Spurs, too, haven’t encountered a similar case in the last decade. Instead of improving the result from the previous year, they went several steps backward.

According to the NBA rules, San Antonio now has a right to fill in his roster spot with someone from the G-League, which is an expected scenario. Popovich’s philosophy of play includes having a dominant center, and we are still now sure in which way does he think to replace him.

All in all, a massive challenge is ahead of one of the best teams in the league and its legendary coach.