Dumars Sidelined for at Least 4 Weeks

Guard Joe Dumars of the Detroit Pistons will miss at least four weeks after breaking the same hand he broke last year, the team said Monday.

Dumars, averaging a career-best 18.4 points per game, suffered a fracture of the third metacarpal bone in his left hand when he tried to break a fall during Saturday’s 105-98 loss at San Antonio.

“When it first happened, I thought, ‘Oh my God!’ It was the same area of the hand that I hurt last year,” Dumars said. “I can’t even hold this piece of paper in this hand--it’s too heavy.”

Dumars, 26, is in his fifth year in the league. He was a member of the NBA Eastern Conference All-Stars last month and was most valuable player of last year’s NBA Finals, which the Pistons won in four games over the Lakers.

The Pistons haven’t decided who will replace Dumars on the roster, Piston spokesman Matt Dobek said.