The Trail Blazers got a big 94-75 home win against the Mavericks last night. But in the process, they also suffered a huge loss that could hurt them down the line.
Starter Wesley Matthews had to be helped off the court during the third quarter of the game after going down with a non-contact injury to his left leg. An MRI later revealed that Matthews had torn his Achilles tendon on the play. The injury will prevent him from playing for the remainder of the 2014-15 NBA season and will force him to undergo surgery.
"It's disbelief," he told reporters, shortly after finding out that he had ruptured his Achilles. "I'm sitting up there in that tube having an MRI, and I don't hear noise, I don't feel my Achilles, I'm just…I can't believe I'm up there while my team's battling. I just haven't processed it all yet."
Several of Matthews' teammates also struggled to come to terms with the news after they heard about the severity of his injury.
"It's hard for our team to think about not having him out there because of everything he brings to this team and the person that he is," Damian Lillard said.
"It's tough, man," LaMarcus Aldridge added. "He's the heart and soul of this team."
The loss of Matthews will be a big blow to the Blazers, who are currently in the third seed in the Western Conference playoff race. Matthews was averaging 15.9 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 2.3 assists this season. Best wishes for a speedy recovery.
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[via ESPN]
