The Toronto Raptors imagined their key free-agent acquisition, Jared Sullinger, would be starting at power forward, throwing his weight around in the paint and grabbing rebounds, when the team began the 2016-17 NBA season. Instead, Sullinger will be recovering from foot surgery, leaving the team with a depth problem at the position.
When the Raptors open at home Wednesday night against the Detroit Pistons, they'll start either veteran reserve Patrick Patterson or rookie Pascal Siakam at the four spot in place of Sullinger, who signed with Toronto on July 14 after four seasons with the Boston Celtics.
Sullinger, a 6-foot-9, 260-pound forward, had a screw inserted into the fifth metatarsal in his left foot in New York City on Monday, a procedure performed by Dr. Martin O'Malley. The team called it a "preventative measure to alleviate symptomatic stress reactions" after the foot was injured in a preseason game versus the Golden State Warriors on Oct. 1.
Sullinger had not played preseason games since, but he did try to work out and the foot seemed to get worse last week. The Raptors say they aren't sure how long he will be out. Although this injury is separate, he missed 24 games with a stress fracture in the same foot in 2014-15. This layoff could be even longer.
"You never know, but a couple months or three months is what we've heard," said Raptors president Masai Ujiri, who with Raptors director of sports science Alex McKechnie accompanied Sullinger to see O'Malley, a foot reconstruction specialist at New York's Hospital for Special Surgery. "But we don't know. It could be less, could be more."
Over his NBA career, Sullinger has averaged 11.1 points, 7.7 rebounds and 24.9 minutes a game. Although he has struggled to keep his weight down, he is known to take advantage of that heft and physicality under the hoop to nab rebounds. The Raptors also like his passing ability and his basketball IQ. Sullinger was going to play a key role in replacing some of the skills Toronto lost when Bismack Biyombo chose to sign in Orlando rather than re-sign in Toronto.
"[Sullinger] was a big piece to what we wanted to do" Ujiri said. "That's the nature of the NBA. You don't cry about it. It's opportunity, and this is how you find players. From [DeMarre Carroll's] injuries last year came Norman Powell, and we're hoping something comes out of this that will make us a stronger team when he returns."
Raptors coach Dwane Casey called Patterson the "leading candidate" for the starting job, but also said he's likely to use both Patterson and Siakam – who was the second of Toronto's two first-round picks in the 2016 NBA Draft (27th overall). The 22-year-old rookie – a native of Cameroon – comes to the league after two standout seasons at New Mexico State University.
Patterson started two games in preseason, averaging 5.3 points and three rebounds over 19.8 minutes, while Siakam started five (7.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, 20.7 minutes). Although Patterson averaged 25 minutes a game during his three seasons in Toronto, the team has usually preferred to bring him off the bench. Siakam, meanwhile, started against the Pistons in exhibition play, so he would be facing familiar faces on Wednesday.
"Pascal brings energy and defensive flexibility, while Patrick's got the veteran leadership and veteran experience at that position, so it will probably be a back and forth until Sully comes back," Casey said.
Rachel Brady