Blazers’ Vit Krejci Expected To Miss Significant Time

Head coach Micah Nori told reporters after the game that Krejci had suffered a fracture, though it’s unclear whether the broken bone is in the 26-year-old’s leg or ankle. Either way, the expectation is that he’ll be unavailable for the foreseeable future.

The injury occurred in the third quarter as Krejci ran back on defense and attempted to take a charge against Suns forward Miles Bridges (Twitter video link). He took an awkward step before making contact with Bridges and fell to the floor clutching at his lower leg in obvious pain. He was helped off the court by teammates Donovan Clingan and Robert Williams moments later.

According to Freeman, Krejci was using crutches and wearing a protective boot on his left foot when he left the arena.

“It’s tough,” Clingan said of the injury. “He’s a guy who has taken great advantage of his minutes and it’s definitely tough to see someone who is as good of a guy (as he is) go down like that. But we’ve got his back.”

Nori added that the mood on the locker room was “very somber” after the win and said it hasn’t yet been determined whether Krejci will require surgery.

As Freeman notes, it’s the third major injury impacting a Blazers backcourt player so far this season. Shaedon Sharpe underwent knee surgery in August and was ruled out for at least six months, while Ja Morant sustained a Grade 2 hamstring strain last week and is expected to be on the shelf for at least four weeks.

Even with Sharpe, Morant, and Krejci all sidelined, the 6-1 Trail Blazers still have Damian Lillard, Scoot Henderson, and Jrue Holiday available to make up their backcourt rotation. Two-way player Chris Youngblood could also see more regular minutes until one of those injured guards returns.

“It’s awful for Vit,” Nori said, per Freeman. “But … we talked about it this summer, like, ‘What are you going to do with all these smalls?’ Well, goodness gracious, thank goodness we have them all.”

A trade-deadline acquisition last season, Krejci averaged 7.2 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 1.7 assists in 19.2 minutes per game in 19 appearances off the bench for Portland down the stretch. He was off to a slow start this fall, contributing 2.7 PPG, 1.6 RPG, and 1.1 APG in his first seven outings (10.3 MPG) while shooting 30.0% from the floor.