Hornets' Cody Martin out approximately six weeks after knee procedure

Martin had been on the shelf since the team’s regular season opener, having played just a single minute in that game. Although his injury was being referred to as left quad soreness, Martin missed all but one preseason game while recovering from left knee tendiopathy and head coach Steve Clifford mentioned that knee after the veteran went down in the opener.

It’s a disappointing turn of events for Martin, who enjoyed a mini-breakout season in 2021/22 as a key reserve in Charlotte, averaging 7.7 PPG, 4.0 RPG, and 2.5 APG on .482/.384/.701 shooting in 71 games (26.3 MPG). His contributions earned him a four-year, $31M+ commitment from the Hornets when he became a restricted free agent this past summer.

The Hornets have been hit hard by the injury bug so far this fall. Starting point guard LaMelo Ball hasn’t seen the floor since the season began due to an ankle sprain, while Terry Rozier and Gordon Hayward have also missed time due to injuries.

Rozier is back in the lineup now and there’s hope that Ball and Hayward won’t be out much longer, but it appears the team will have to get by without Martin until sometime around Christmas. As long as he’s unavailable, the Hornets figure to lean heavily on starting forwards P.J. Washington and Kelly Oubre, with Jalen McDaniels also seeing significant minutes off the bench.