Denver Nuggets rookie DaRon Holmes II is expected to miss the entire 2024-25 NBA season after reportedly suffering a torn Achilles tendon during Friday’s summer league game with the Los Angeles Clippers. News of Holmes’ injury was first reported By Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Holmes, who turns 22 in August, suffered an Achilles injury with about four minutes left in the fourth quarter.
While defending Kobe Brown as he drove to the basket, Holmes jumped and landed on his right foot. The injury may have occurred when he took a step back before jumping. He subsequently fell to the ground and tried to get away from under the basket while reaching for his right leg.
Here’s video of the reportedly season-ending injury suffered by Denver Nuggets rookie DaRon Holmes II during his NBA Summer League debut. Holmes, who the Nuggets had traded up six spots for to move up, tore his right Achilles tendon, which is expected to sideline him for the remainder of the season. photo.twitter.com/9C4yKC0oPd
— SpursReport (@SpursReporter) July 13, 2024
It looked like DaRon Holmes II had injured his Achilles tendon in the awkward recovery step and quick jump to try to defend the shot. He knew it as soon as he landed and twisted it.
Curse… image.twitter.com/JNk5HDqqhQ
— Ben Sig (@sig_50) July 13, 2024
The 6-foot-2 forward eventually managed to get to his feet and walk to the 3-point line, but he was clearly limping and unable to put weight on his right foot. After play was stopped, Holmes limped to the bench for medical attention and was taken to the locker room.
Before the injury, Holmes was having a strong summer league debut. In 26 minutes, he scored 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting (and 3-of-3 on 3-pointers) and grabbed seven rebounds.
Denver traded up in the first round to get Holmes with the 22nd pick, sending the 28th pick (which turned out to be Virginia’s Ryan Dunn), the 56th pick and second-round picks in 2026 and 2031 in return.
In three seasons at Dayton, Holmes averaged 17.1 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game and shot 36 percent from 3-point range. As a junior, he scored 20.4 points per game with 8.5 rebounds and 2.1 blocks, earning second-team All-American honors and Atlantic 10 co-Player of the Year honors.
The Nuggets saw Holmeas a potential backup to Nikola Jokic or a frontcourt player who could possibly play alongside the MVP for lob passes and three-point shots.
A big factor in why I have a high opinion of DaRon Holmes II for next season is his interchangeability on defense.
He uses his length combined with his quickness very well on this play to get a great block on the shooter.
I hope he has a great second year in Dayton. photo.twitter.com/kLfOg5nkIl
— Ersin Demir (@EDemirNBA) April 8, 2022
More importantly, Denver also valued Holmes’ defensive talents, as he could guard three or four positions on the court and provide much-needed rim protection. Last season, Holmes was awarded the Atlantic 10 Defensive Player of the Year. As a freshman, he set a Dayton program record with 81 blocked shots.
Holmes will need at least a year to recover from an Achilles injury and it could affect his explosiveness and athleticism. But at 22, the hope is that he can return to being the player the Nuggets project him to be.