all-star forward Paul Millsap underwent successful reconstructive surgery to repair a torn ligament in his left wrist, the organization announced Sunday night.
Millsap “is expected to miss the next several months” and that a return date “will be dependent upon consistent assessment throughout the rehab process,” according to the Nuggets. Dr. Frank Scott of UCHealth performed the procedure.
Millsap sustained the injury in last Sunday’s loss at the . Nuggets coach Michael Malone said Millsap had been speaking to doctors in Denver and Atlanta throughout the past week to determine the best course of action, though the coach conceded Millsap would be out for an extended period of time.
Millsap was widely viewed internally as the Nuggets’ missing piece to end their four-year playoff drought when signed as a free agent this past offseason. He was Denver’s second-leading scorer (15.3 points per game) and rebounder (6.2 per game) through 16 games while also providing 3.1 assists per game and strong defense. The 12-year veteran was also consistently praised for his calm demeanor, big-game experience and playmaking ability down the stretch.
In Denver’s three games without Millsap, has started twice at power forward, while held that role against a team that plays smaller lineups and leads the NBA in 3-point attempts. Trey Lyles, who was not part of the rotation at the start of the season, has become Denver’s first power forward off the bench. Mason Plumlee can also play that position when the Nuggets want to deploy a bigger a lineup, and can fill that spot when Denver goes small.
“That injury is not going to define us or our season,” Malone said recently. “We’re going to continue to prepare, to work, to fight and to compete.”
Denver is 11-8 and next plays at Utah Tuesday night.
