New York Knicks centre Ronny Turiaf breaks a left hand bone; Doubtful for FIBA EuroBasket - NBA News
The 28-year-old centre of New York Knicks, Ronny Turiaf broke a bone in his left hand on Tuesday while playing an exhibition game in Europe.
The French basketball player was representing his native team against Great Britain in London as a part of the preparation for the forthcoming FIBA EuroBasket Tournament and the London Olympics.
During the exhibition game, Turiaf got tangled up with one of the players from the opposition in a struggle for a rebound. The x-ray reports and the medical staff of the London Hospital confirmed that the incident caused a fracture
on Turiaf’s left hand.
This comes as a blow to the French squad as they prepare to take on big teams like Spain and Germany in the EuroBasket, which is nearly two weeks away. The first two teams in the tournament will get a direct entry in the Olympics
while the teams finishing from 3rd to 6th will have to play a qualifying round.
Ronny has been sidelined many times in the past as well as a result of injuries and he was hoping to make an impact this time after being completely fit and healthy.
The head coach of France, Vincent Collet said on the injury of his superstar.
“The hypothetical withdrawal of Ronny Turiaf, a player who is as important on the court as he is off it, could be a real blow to France. I can only imagine how disappointed and frustrated Ronny would be to miss the EuroBasket.
If he has to withdraw, we will see how to fill the void. For the time being I do not want to bring myself to think he is not a part of the team.”
At this point, no statement has come from Ronny or any team officials regarding his participation in the tournament after the injury. According to the sources, the NBA centre is heading towards Paris to determine the severity of
the injury. The officials from the league have stated that Turiaf will consider withdrawing himself from the French line-up if the reports in Paris show lasting damages.
His NBA career is a story full of injuries and unforeseen circumstances. Ronny faced his first major setback when he entered NBA in 2005 as 37th overall pick. Los Angeles Lakers drafted Turiaf and after the physical
examination, it was found that Ronny has an enlarged aortic root in his heart which resulted in an open-heart surgery. As a result, he was sidelined from the league for nearly six months and re-signed with Lakers later on.
He was traded to the Warriors afterwards. Ronny joined the New York Knicks in the beginning of the 2010-2011 season after posting his lowest scoring performance in the Golden State Warriors’ uniform since his rookie season.
Tags: