Blazers C Ibou Badji has knee surgery, out for regular season

Portland Trail Blazers rookie center Ibou Badji is expected to be sidelined eight weeks after undergoing left knee surgery, the team announced Tuesday.

The timeline will carry through the remainder of the regular season and into the playoffs.

Badji, 20, signed a two-way contract with the Trail Blazers in November. The 7-foot-1, 240-pound Badji did not make his NBA debut, however.

Badji represented his native Senegal at the 2019 FIBA Under-19 Basketball World Cup in Greece. He also played for the Wisconsin Herd of the G League after he was not selected in the 2022 NBA Draft.