Clippers’ Danilo Gallinari dealing with more serious injury than initially thought
An MRI exam revealed that Clippers forward Danilo Gallinari has a non-displaced fracture of his right hand, the team announced Friday night.
The Clippers said Gallinari, who sat out his third consecutive game because of what had been called a bruised right hand after the forward got two X-rays, will be reevaluated in a couple of weeks.
Gallinari and the Clippers are unsure when he will return.
But after Friday night’s game against the New York Knicks at Staples Center, the Clippers will have only 21 regular-season games remaining.
“They are still evaluating it,” Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. “I don’t think he’s going to be back soon. But I think he’ll be back. The problem right now is with [21] games left, we’re trying to get in the playoffs and not having him and Avery [Bradley, sports hernia], it’s tough. But no one is going to feel sorry for us. I tell our guys that every single day. It felt like I said that every single game, and you just got to find a way.”
Williams, Wallace out of days
C.J. Williams, on a two-way contract to play for the Clippers’ development league team, the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, played in possibly his final game for L.A. on Friday night against the Knicks because his maximum of 45 days spent with the Clippers had been reached.
Tyrone Wallace, also is on a two-way contract, played possibly his final game Tuesday night at Denver because he reached his limit, too.
Both Williams and Wallace can resume playing for the Clippers if they have their two-way contracts converted into regular, prorated rookie contracts.
The Clippers offered Wallace a four-year deal, but the final three years were non-guaranteed, according to NBA officials who were not authorized to speak on the matter.
Wallace started 12 games for the Clippers and played in 21, averaging 10.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.5 assists. Williams started in 16 games and played in 30, averaging 5.9 points.
“I know we’re trying to sign one of them and see what we can do,” Rivers said. “But right now, none of that’s working. We just got to get some more players and we’ve got to get at least one of those guys or someone in quickly. We don’t have enough guards right now to play. So we need one.”
Follow Broderick Turner on Twitter @BA_Turner
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