Pacers security guard Ben SheppardWorld Health Organization tore the meniscus of the left knee last week, is scheduled to have surgery on the injury this Wednesday, the head coach Rick Carlisle told reporters before Monday’s game, per Scott Agnes of the Fieldhouse Files (Link to Twitter).
While the Pacers are unlikely to give a specific recovery timeline until that procedure is complete, Carlisle previously said Sheppard could be out for “a few weeks.” This suggests that the surgery will most likely be a meniscectomy, which involves removing the meniscus, rather than a complete repair of the tear. The recovery schedule for a meniscectomy can often be measured in weeks, while a full repair usually takes a player out for several months.
In other injury news, Pacers Carlisle gave a positive update on the center Ivitsa Zubak next sunday sprained left ankleindicating that the big man is “doing things better,” according to Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star (Link to Twitter).
“He entered the arena without boots” said Carlisle. “… There’s no timetable, but it’s encouraging. There was a lot of swelling last night, but it’s better today.”
Meanwhile, the guard Andrew Nembhardt missed Monday’s game in Milwaukee because of what Carlisle called “an issue we’re trying to address. The Pacers coach said he wasn’t sure if Nembhard would have to miss extra time (Link to Twitter through Dopirak).
Here’s some more NBA injury news:
- The Rockets will be centerless Stephen Adams sometime before November, according to the head coach Made by Udok. As Will Guillory of The Athletic relays (via Twitter), Udoka said Monday that Adams, who has been ruled out for the game with a strained right fibula, underwent imaging on his lower leg and will miss at least the next week or two.
- Wizards forward A. Ya. Dybants missed a fourth straight game to open his rookie season Monday, but the No. 1 overall pick is “moving forward in a very positive way” and is expected to work harder on the court Tuesday, the head coach Brian Keefe said on Monday (Link to Twitter via Josh Robbins of The Athletic ). Keefe declined to say whether he thinks DiBanza will be able to play Wednesday in Cleveland.
- He asked where things were Kobe White (left calf strain), Mog Knueppel (Left hamstring strain), and Grant Williams (Right hamstring strain), Hornets head coach Charles Lee said there is no specific timetable for their return yet. Lee added that all three are making “positive steps” and suggested he expects to have more information after the team returns from this week’s two-game road trip to Detroit on Wednesday and Washington on Friday (Link to video on Twitter via Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer ).
- According to Vinnie Benedetto of The Denver Gazette (Link to Twitter), the hope is this Nuggets forward Spencer Jones will make his debut in the 2026/27 season in the next three games. Jones has been out since training camp and remains sidelined with what the team is calling bilateral treatment for a hamstring injury.