After rupturing the UCL in his right thumb on 25th October, Portland Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons is anticipated to miss four to six weeks, the team reported. The Trail Blazers and Los Angeles Clippers clashed in their season opener in California.
Simons finished with 18 points, two rebounds, and four assists in 27 minutes of action. Nevertheless, the Trail Blazers suffered a 123-111 defeat and let Paul George and Kawhi Leonard score a combined 50 points. With a 33-49 record from the previous season, they earned the 13th seed in the Western Conference.
Anfernee Simons will undergo surgery for a UCL tear in right thumb and is expected to miss 4-6 weeks pic.twitter.com/IUgKmhCyWY
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) October 27, 2023
Damian Lillard headed a talented group of players, but the team missed the play-in tournament and the NBA playoffs for the second consecutive year. The Trail Blazers are currently rebuilding after trading Damian Lillard to the Milwaukee Bucks during the offseason.
The average time lost for thumb UCL tears in the NBA is 53 days (~7.5 weeks) but there is reason for optimism for Portland fans. Understanding Anfernee Simons’ Thumb Injury: https://t.co/ZeanThnIBM
— Jeff Stotts (@InStreetClothes) October 27, 2023
For the next month or so, Portland’s hopes of having a strong backcourt led by Scoot Henderson and Anfernee Simons have been dashed. According to Jeff Stotts of In Street Clothes, do not be surprised if he stays out a bit longer than that.
When will Anfernee Simons return?
Simons left the Blazers’ season-opening game versus the Los Angeles Clippers early due to what was initially thought to be a thumb injury, however, an MRI showed the full extent of the damage. Ultimately, he scored 18 points on 6-of-14 shooting, including 2 of 6 from three-point range.
In the Trail Blazers’ season-opening loss to the Clippers in Los Angeles, Simons finished the game strongly with a stellar performance. Though there is still a lot of work to be done, the aim is for him to be a member of Portland’s dynamic and athletic core alongside Shaedon Sharpe, Henderson, and other players. For a few weeks, that progress is put on hold.
Coach Chauncey Billups of the Trail Blazers announced that Shaedon Sharpe will start against their upcoming opponents in Orlando Magic. “For us, we’ve just got to do what we’ve got to do, keep it moving,” Billups said. “We’ll miss everything that he (Simons) does until he gets back. But we’ll start Shaedon and just keep going.”
Anfernee Simons had 33 points in the first half, the most in a 1st half of a regular season game in Trail Blazers history. pic.twitter.com/XGDWmGyTvl
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 4, 2022
According to the injury timeline, Simons’ return is expected to be between Christmas and Thanksgiving. Look out for Malcolm Brogdon to start in the backcourt alongside Henderson while Simons is away. No doubt this is a huge blow to the rebuilding Trail Blazers.
Anfernee Simons as a starter in 2022:
22.0 PPG
5.5 APG
45/42/87%1 of 2 players that shot over 40% on 7.5 3PA. pic.twitter.com/buItoPXzwO
— StatMuse (@statmuse) June 28, 2022
It remains to be seen how Simons shrugs off this injury and provides a stellar comeback to his NBA career and to his beloved fans around the world. He is deemed as one of the upcoming stars and has a huge ceiling above him to be one of the greats in the sport.