Charlotte Hornets center Nick Richards will be sidelined indefinitely due to a broken rib.
Richards went down early after injuring his right shoulder in the Hornets’ 124-109 loss to the Boston Celtics on Friday night. An MRI performed on Tuesday revealed a fracture of the first rib below the right collarbone. .
Richards will be evaluated “every two weeks,” starting in two weeks. It is unclear how long he will be out.
Richards has averaged a career-high 11 points and 10 rebounds per game this season, his fifth with the Hornets. He is in the second year of a three-year, $15 million contract with the franchise this fall. Richards has been starting this season in place of regular center Mark Williams, who has yet to take the field as he recovers from a foot injury.
“Nick has been a big part of what we’ve done these first five games. “I’m very happy with him and his ability to dominate the paint,” coach Charles Lee said Saturday. . “He’s altered a lot of throws and I think he’s helping us with his pick-and-roll coverage and understanding the different spaces to be in in center field and creating some indecision for the ball handlers.
“He’s done a great job defensively and then offensively, creating a lot of advantages for all of our scorers and all of our ball handlers. He’s one of our core players who has been one of those relentless offensive rebounders. It helped him benefit and also led us to kick three. “It is an unfortunate loss.”
The Hornets are 2-5 this season and have lost three straight, including back-to-back losses to the Celtics. The Hornets went 21-61 last season and missed the playoffs for the eighth straight year. Lee was hired to replace Steve Clifford as the team’s head coach this past offseason.
The Hornets will host the Detroit Pistons next Wednesday night.