Apparently Anderson Silva would fit right in the NBA. The 2013-14 season has been the Year of the Supporting Cast for professional basketball, though not the one GMs spend their time scouting for, and Chris Paul is the latest victim of a long series of serious league injuries. Though it’s not known just how severe the injury is, even with the rosiest news, Paul could be out three to five weeks at the least.
The Clippers were on route to a victory against the Mavericks, what would be its seventh in ten contests, when Paul was fouled by Monta Ellis while navigating around a screen. It appeared that CP3 was trying to sell the contact when he tumbled violently and separated his shoulder. The point guard was playing magnificently up to that point with 19 points, six assists, three rebounds, one steal and only one turnover in 22 minutes of action. This writer was tracking his progress in a Head-to-Heat Points fantasy basketball league and looked to be on way to a 40 fantasy point night before going “silent.” Really, Paul was cringing on the floor of the Clippers arena.
The Clipper had his shoulder in a sling following his team victory and will have an MRI taken to evaluate the extremity of the damage. There’s speculation that the star might need surgery if the ailment turns out to be as bad as it looked. But, again, that remains speculation.
If Paul is forced to miss three weeks of playing time that would translate to about 10 games but, in all likelihood, will see his time off the court be more considerable than that. With surgery, his return could be months away.
This will be a catastrophic blow for the Clippers who were riding Paul’s 19.6 points, league-best 11.3 assists, 4.7 rebounds, and crafty 2.5 steals rather comfortably as of late. In his absence, Darren Collison will see the bulk of minutes.
