After undergoing successful arthroscopic surgery on his right knee, Serge Ibaka is expected to miss four to six weeks, the Oklahoma City Thunder have announced.
On Monday, Royce Young of ESPN reported that Ibaka traveled to New York to see a specialist for further evaluation on his sore right knee, with the expectation that he has to undergo a procedure to address the issue.
With the given timetable, Ibaka is expected to miss the remainder of the season, with the possibility of missing the first couple weeks of the playoffs, assuming the Thunder makes it.
The Thunder has been hit with injuries all season long, with Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Anthony Morrow, Mitch McGary, and Steven Adams all having to miss an extended period of time.
Currently, Oklahoma City is fighting for the eighth seed in the Western Conference, as they own a half-game lead over the New Orleans Pelicans. With Durant still out with a foot injury and Ibaka added to the list, it becomes that much tougher for Westbrook to carry the team into the playoffs.
In Ibaka’s absence, rookie Mitch McGary should see more play time, along with veteran Nick Collison.
With 15 more games remaining, the race for eighth in the West becomes more interesting.