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UPDATE on April 22 at 9 p.m. ET: The Wizards announced that Avdija will be out for 12 weeks, which will take him out of action until at least early July. At any rate, he is out for the rest of the regular season and the original article is below.
Injury update: Deni Avdija has been diagnosed with a right fibular hairline fracture. There will be no surgery required and he is expected to make a full recovery in approximately 12 weeks.
— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) April 23, 2021
On Tuesday, Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Washington Wizards forward Deni Avdija suffered a hairline fracture of his right ankle during the second quarter of the team’s 118-114 win over the Golden State Warriors. Because of the injury, he will miss the rest of the season.
X-Rays on right ankle of Wizards rookie F Deni Avdija reveal a hairline fracture, source tells ESPN. MRI tomorrow. Season over, but no surgery expected to be needed.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 22, 2021
As of early Thursday morning, the Washington Wizards have not released a official statement.
The news is certainly a blow to the Wizards’ rotational depth. Avdija averaged 6.3 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 23.5 minutes per game in his rookie season with 53 appearances overall. Avdija wasn’t just a rotational player, he started 31 games as well. In addition to Avdija’s injury, Rui Hachimura didn’t play last due to a minor knee injury which he suffered in Washington’s April 17 game against the Detroit Pistons.
The Wizards are trying to make a playoff push and are now 10th in the Eastern Conference, good enough for an appearance for the play-in round. They officially moved up after the Chicago Bulls lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers, 121-105 last night. Washington will have a hard time getting to the seventh seed since they are 5.5 games behind the Miami Heat, but they are just two games behind the Indiana Pacers for the ninth see and 3.5 games behind the Charlotte Hornets for the eighth. If Washington can make the eighth seed, they will only have to win one game in the play-in tournament to make the Round of 16 as opposed to two.
It is unfortunate to see Avdija’s rookie season cut short. But hopefully Hachimura comes back soon and other key veterans who play small forward like Davis Bertans stay hot for the rest of the regular season.