Victor Oladipo suffered a sprained right wrist after a hard fall in their game against the Boston Celtics. He was taken out of the game and did not return.
Oladipo took a hard fall after he closed out hard to challenge Jonas Jerebko who was open at the corner towards the end of the first quarter. Jerebko pump faked and got Oladipo into the air. Jerebko took a dribble and drove to the baseline but caught Oladipo by the hips.
Oladipo landed on his back and stayed down for a couple of minutes in front of the Oklahoma City Thunder's bench. "I felt the thump with my feet," said Thunder coach Billy Donovan. "The floor kind of shook," he added.
Thunder star Russel Westbrook witnessed the accident and immediately offered a prayer for his teammate. "I was just hoping he was OK man," Westbrook said, "just got to the bench and started praying for him. That's the first thing I did," he added.
At first look, it looked like a very serious injury because Oladipo landed almost flat on his back. It was obvious that he was in pain before he got up from the floor. Luckily, X-ray result revealed no structural damage to his back or hip and was only diagnosed with a sprained right wrist. He also took the NBA's concussion test and passed it.
With Oladipo out, Westbrook had to carry more of the scoring load for the Thunder. Oladipo is the second leading scorer of the Thunder with 16.8 points on career-high shooting 45.8 percent from the field including 38.1 percent from deep. He also provides perimeter defense next to Andre Roberson.
The Thunder medical staff are playing it safe with Oladipo because they need him on the floor as much as they need Westbrook. He will be closely monitored and his return will be a game- time decision.
