Raptors center Jakob Poeltl has undergone surgery to repair a ligament tear in the fifth finger of his left hand, the team announced late on Tuesday night in a press release.
The injury occurred in the second quarter of Sunday’s victory over Charlotte.
The Raptors didn’t provide any sort of recovery timeline for Poeltl, simply stating that his status will be updated as appropriate.
Any type of finger surgery typically results in a multi-week absence, and while the big man could end up being healthy enough to play before the end of the season, Toronto is falling out of the postseason race and may simply decide to shut him down.
After getting blown out at home by the Pelicans on Tuesday, the Raptors are 4.5 games back of the No. 10 seed in the East. They’re also missing Scottie Barnes, who underwent hand surgery of his own earlier this week and might not be back before the end of the regular season.
Poeltl, who was acquired from San Antonio by the Raptors at the 2023 trade deadline, signed a four-year, $78M contract with the club during the offseason.
In his first season back with the Toronto team that originally drafted him in 2016, the 28-year-old averaged 11.1 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 26.4 minutes per game across 50 appearances (all starts).
The Raptors traded for another veteran center — Kelly Olynyk — at this season’s deadline and extended him this week, but that deal shouldn’t have a real impact on Poeltl’s future in Toronto since the two big men have different skill sets.
While Olynyk excels at stretching the floor, Poeltl serves as a pick-and-roll partner for the team’s guards and is more of a rim protector on defense.
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