Brooklyn Nets: Kyrie Irving sustains facial fracture in pickup game
The Nets will start their preseason campaign against the Lakers in China on October 10
Before officially getting started with his campaign for the Brooklyn Nets, Kyrie Irving has suffered an injury. During a pickup game, Irving was elbowed in the face. Medical reports later revealed that the NBA star has suffered a facial fracture on the left side.
The injury happened during one of the final workouts that the Nets were going through before their training camp opens. Nets coach Kenny Atkinson and General Manager Sean Marks were preparing for the media meet when the injury news came in. The incident took place roughly an hour before the team's media schedule. Atkinson chose not to attend the media meeting. Instead, he kept himself occupied with Irving, as the latter was taken for medical evaluation.
This is not the first time that the point guard suffered a facial fracture. Back in 2017, he suffered a similar injury. That required him to wear a facemask. However, he found it to be extremely irritating.
He even shared his disgust to media, and compared the mask to foggy blinders. This season, Bleacher Report says that there is a huge possibility that Irving might be required to wear a mask again.
The Nets are scheduled to open their training camp on Saturday. Before that, the team management is scheduled to address the media again on Friday. The team will begin their preseason campaign on October 10, when they will take on the Los Angeles Lakers in the Mercedes-Benz Arena Shanghai. They will again face the same opponents in a return game at the Shenzhen Dayun Arena on October 12.
The Nets have high expectations resting on Irving. After spending two years with the Boston Celtics, Irving joined the Brooklyn Nets for a whopping $141 million contract for four years. The six-time All Star's previous season was incredible as far as his individual performance is concerned. Throughout the season, he averaged 23.8 points per game. Other notable stats include his career-best 5.0 rebounds and 6.9 assists per match. He is indeed a valuable asset for the Nets. However, with his injury just before the preseason campaign, the team's management will have some worries.
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