Fansided

Nikola Pekovic’s injury might be career threatening

By CM Towle

Mar 7, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves center Nikola Pekovic (14) attempts the drive to the basket past Portland Trail Blazers center Robin Lopez (42) in the first half at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 7, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves center Nikola Pekovic (14) attempts the drive to the basket past Portland Trail Blazers center Robin Lopez (42) in the first half at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

Minnesota Timberwolves center Nikola Pekovic will undergo surgery to repair his right Achilles tendon.

More from Minnesota Timberwolves

Timberwolves center Nikola Pekovic will undergo surgery in the next week to repair his right Achilles tendon, as well as remove damage, according to a report by the Star Tribune. Pekovic has only played 31 games this NBA season due to the injury and previously was limited to 54 games the season before. The question is whether the damage is severe enough in the tendon to be potentially career threatening. There are only seven games left in this season and Pekovic is expected to be out indefinitely. The Wolves are not in playoff contention at 16-59.

At this point, it’s also not known whether Pekovic will recover soon enough to participate in court work in the off-season, or if the damage could lead him to be out even longer. The debridement surgery will be done by Dr. Robert Anderson in Charlotte, North Carolina and take place next Wednesday. Flip Saunders had already ruled Pekovic out for the rest of the season before the Wolves game on Wednesday of this week. He said that the team had to do something and they had already tried various ways of letting it heal and they wanted to be proactive.

The Wolves owe Pekovic about $36 million over the next three years as part of a five year contract he signed in 2013. The 6’11, 295 pound Pekovic has only played in 85 games since signing that contract back in 2013. Pekovic’s play total has gone down over the last three season, culminating in the career-low total of 31 that he will have at the end of this season on the 15th.

The Wolves will have to contemplate what to do next with Pekovic in the off-season. As Saunders noted, the team has tried a variety of ways to try and keep the Montenegrin on the court and so far it hasn’t paid off at all. This last off-season saw him getting fitted for a better shoe, seeing specialists about his feet and trying to devise a training regimen that might help him stay healthy. Some have even simply suggested that he lose weight, that nearly 300 pounds of weight just doesn’t bode well for the human body running up and down the basketball court.

More than likely the Wolves will find themselves contemplating trade scenarios at the end of the off-season if they want to dump Pekovic and his huge contract. However, even that will depend on how Pekovic comes out of the surgery and eventual rehab.

Next: Luol Deng unsure of return to Heat next season

More from FanSided

Home/Minnesota Timberwolves