Shabazz Muhammad Injury: Updates on Timberwolves Star's Finger Surgery, Recovery
Minnesota Timberwolves small forward Shabazz Muhammad will be out for the rest of the 2014-15 NBA season due to a finger injury that requires surgery.
The Timberwolves announced details of the injury and the surgery on Saturday:
On Monday, the team announced Muhammad's surgery was successful and confirmed he is expected to miss the rest of the season.
Muhammad has been emerging as a rising star in his second NBA campaign after being the 14th overall pick in the 2013 draft. The UCLA product has averaged 13.5 points per contest in just 22.8 minutes of action this season.
An abdominal injury had previously kept Muhammad out for 16 games, but he returned on February 9 to put up 18 points versus the Atlanta Hawks.
It has to be frustrating for the Timberwolves and Muhammad that he hasn't been able to build more on his promising game, mostly due to health issues. If he can stay in the lineup for 2015-16, Minnesota has the makings of a massive improvement.
Between Muhammad, Andrew Wiggins, Ricky Rubio and Nikola Pekovic, coach Flip Saunders' squad has a promising nucleus to move forward with. The hope is that Muhammad can become more durable and come into his own as a full-time starter in his third year.
