Chandler Parsons Injury Update: Mavs F Undergoes Season-Ending Knee Surgery
It was announced Friday that Dallas Mavericks forward Chandler Parsons will miss the remainder of the 2015-16 season after undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee.
ESPN.com's Tim MacMahon was the first to report the news. The team also confirmed the diagnosis.
MacMahon originally reported Tuesday that the 27-year-old star was expected to land on the shelf for the remainder of the campaign. According to MacMahon, Parsons should be ready for offseason workouts, and his current injury is not as serious as the cartilage issue in his right knee that cut his 2014-15 season short.
The former second-round draft pick of the Houston Rockets has been a key contributor during his two seasons with the Mavs despite his inability to avoid the injury bug.
He has been fantastic at both ends of the floor in 2015-16, with per-game averages of 13.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.8 assists to go along with a career-best field-goal percentage of 49.2 percent. He also has an above-average player efficiency rating of 16.31, according to ESPN.com.
Dallas has been in the thick of the playoff picture all season, but as pointed out by Ben Rohrbach of WEEI, the Mavericks could be in danger of missing out on the postseason without arguably their most important player in the fold:
In addition to the Mavs' playoff chances being negatively impacted, it is also entirely possible that Parsons' value on the free-agent market could take a hit.
Per MacMahon, it remains likely that Parsons will opt out of his contract and test the market regardless of his health:
That means it is possible that Parsons has played his final game for the Mavericks, although the team's current focus is centered on how it can replace him for the rest of the season.
Dallas doesn't have another wingman of his ilk on its roster, so it will either be forced to go big with Dirk Nowitzki, Zaza Pachulia and David Lee on the floor at the same time, or small with point guard J.J. Barea and Raymond Felton seeing increased playing time behind or alongside Deron Williams.
No matter what combination head coach Rick Carlisle uses, however, there is no question the Mavs are worse off without Parsons' presence in the lineup, and they now face an uphill climb toward the postseason.
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