Charlotte Hornets Roster, Injury News 2017: Cody Zeller Suffers Torn Meniscus in Left Knee, Out Indefinitely
The Charlotte Hornets are going to be a little thin in the frontcourt in the coming weeks because center Cody Zeller's going to miss a significant amount of games due to a knee injury.
The Hornets have announced that Zeller has been diagnosed with a torn medial meniscus in his left knee, and he's going to be out indefinitely.
The team has yet to decide if Zeller would have to go under the knife to repair the damage to his knee.
"It's unclear how long Cody Zeller will be out as it mostly depends on if he will get surgery or not. He could opt to forgo surgery and just rehab the injury which would probably let him return sooner. If he does opt for surgery to repair his torn meniscus, he will most likely be out for around six weeks," Jerry Stephens said in his column for Swarm and Sting.
Zeller went down with the injury after he landed awkwardly under the basket late in the third quarter of their 101–87 loss to the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday.
In 19 games this season, Zeller is averaging 7.2 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in just under 20 minutes per game. He's also shooting 49.5 percent from the field and 72.4 percent from the free-throw line.
Aside from Zeller, the Hornets are also missing the services of big man Frank Kaminsky.
The third-year center/forward sprained his right ankle in the second quarter of Wednesday's game and he has sat out the last two games. He is listed as questionable for Monday's game against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
But with Zeller sidelined, Kaminsky is slated to see an increased role once he returns from the ankle injury. In the meantime, Johnny O'Bryant and Treveon Graham should continue to see a significant uptick in playing time.