OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma City forward and native Minnesota Chet Holmgren, the No. 2 overall pick in the NBA draft, will miss the 2022-23 season because of a right foot injury.
Holmgren, who starred at Minnehaha Academy in Minneapolis, was hurt while playing in a pro-am game last weekend in Seattle, near where he starred last season for Gonzaga. The Thunder announced early Thursday that he sustained a Lisfranc injury. Video appeared to show Holmgren was hurt on a play while defending LeBron James.
“We know Chet has a long career ahead of him within our organization and the Oklahoma City community,” Thunder executive vice president and general manager Sam Presti said in a statement. "One of the things that most impressed us during the process of selecting Chet was his determination and focus. We expect that same tenacity will carry him through this period of time as we work together and support him during his rehabilitation.”
The 7-foot Holmgren averaged 14.1 points and was fourth in the nation last season with 3.7 blocked shots per game. He is the second big-name Minnesota hoopster to suffer a season-ending injury in recent days: U Conn guard Paige Bueckers shredded her knee playing in a pickup game Aug. 1 and will miss the entire 2022-23 campaign.
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