Manu Ginobili Injures Ankle vs. Magic

San Antonio Spurs shooting guard Manu Ginobili was ruled out of Wednesday's game against the Orlando Magic after he suffered a left ankle impingement, according to the team's official Twitter account.

Ginobili appeared to roll his left ankle on a drive to the basket, but it didn't look particularly serious at first glance. As the San Antonio Express-News' Jeff McDonald observed, team trainers weren't "even really fussing with Ginobili on the bench."

The good news for the Spurs is that even if Ginobili's injury is a tad more serious than it appeared on the surface, Wednesday's game represents their last until Feb. 24.

In the event that Ginobili misses time after the All-Star break because the Spurs want to maintain a cautious outlook in advance of the postseason, the Spurs can take solace in the fact that they have capable players who can step up and assume the sixth-man mantle.

Specifically, the upstart Jonathon Simmons would project as the primary backup shooting guard behind Danny Green if Ginobili misses extended action.

Entering Wednesday night, Simmons was averaging 6.3 points, 2.3 rebounds and 0.7 steals while shooting 43.9 percent from the field and 32.2 percent from three in 18.1 minutes per game.