No. 2 overall pick Chet Holmgren will miss the entirety of the 2022-23 NBA season.
On Aug. 24, The Athletic's Shams Charania reported that there's fear Holmgren has suffered ligament damage in his right foot. On Aug. 25 the Thunder announced that the 20-year-old will miss his rookie campaign with a Lisfranc injury.
The Thunder selected Holmgren with the No. 2 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. He showcased his potential at NBA Summer League, averaging 14.0 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.8 blocks across five games.
What's next for Holmgren? Here's everything we know about his injury.
What is Chet Holmgren's injury?
Holmgren has suffered a Lisfranc injury in his right foot. Here is the definition of a Lisfranc joint injury, per Cedars-Sinai:
A Lisfranc joint injury is a type of injury to the bones or ligaments, or both, in the middle part of your foot. In a Lisfranc joint injury, there is usually damage to the cartilage covering these bones.
Prior to the confirmation of Holmgren's injury, Jeff Stotts of In Street Clothes speculated that the injury could be a Lisfranc injury, providing context on the function of that area of the foot.
One of the biggest concerns here would be a Lisfranc injury involving the midfoot. This area of the foot helps stabilize the foot and transfer stress while weight bearing.
— Jeff Stotts (@InStreetClothes) August 24, 2022
Holmgren appeared to tweak his ankle while defending LeBron James in transition during a game at Jamal Crawford's CrawsOver Pro-Am League on Aug. 20. Holmgren left the game and did not return.
Here's a video of the sequence:
Chet Holmgren appeared to injure his ankle while guarding LeBron on this possession 👀pic.twitter.com/AMbvC7N1sq
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) August 21, 2022
Holmgren is believed to have suffered the injury on that play.
MORE: Why LeBron's CrawsOver Pro-Am appearance was cut short
How long will Chet Holmgren be out?
Holmgren will miss the entirety of his rookie season, postponing his NBA debut until the 2023-24 season.
The news is a devastating blow to the Thunder, who have missed the playoffs in each of the last two seasons and looked to begin building a future around the trio of Holmgren, Josh Giddey and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
In the franchise's official announcement, Sam Presti, Thunder executive vice president and general manager, offered the following statement:
Certainly, we are disappointed for Chet, especially given the excitement he had about getting on the floor with his teammates this season. We know Chet has a long career ahead of him within our organization and the Oklahoma City community. 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.
