Update on Kings forward Marvin Bagley III’s latest injury: How long will he be out?
Kings forward Marvin Bagley III is expected to miss the “next few games” after being diagnosed with a midfoot sprain, the team said.
The Kings (12-19) and Phoenix Suns (11-20) will both be shorthanded when they meet Saturday night Golden 1 Center. Bagley and point guard De’Aaron Fox were both listed as inactive. The Suns will be without center Deandre Ayton, the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, due to a sprained ankle. Devin Booker (thumb), Frank Kaminsky (knee) and Kelly Oubre Jr. (groin) are all probable.
Bagley and Fox were injured in Thursday’s double-overtime loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Fox left the game after experiencing back spasms less than two minutes into the first quarter. An MRI on Friday revealed no structural damage. Kings coach Luke Walton said Fox is considered day-to-day.
Bagley hurt his foot with just over four minutes to play in the third quarter against the Timberwolves. He was led to the locker room to be evaluated by the team’s medical staff.
The Kings later announced Bagley would not return to the game due to a foot injury. He was seen leaving the locker room in a walking boot after the game. Bagley underwent an MRI on Friday and met with a foot specialist on Saturday before the team disclosed the nature of his injury shortly before tipoff.
The Kings were just returning to full strength after Fox and Bagley combined to miss a total of 39 games over the first two months of the season when both players were injured again in the loss to Minnesota. Bagley previously missed 22 games with a broken thumb. Fox missed 17 games with a grade-3 ankle sprain.
“I’ve never seen two guys get hurt, work so hard to get back and then go out (again), both of them in the same game,” Kings forward Harrison Barnes said. “I’ve never seen that before, but that’s part of the league. That’s part of the grind. We have to continue to get better, continue to find continuity and then, when we’re working guys back and getting guys 100-percent healthy, just continue to try to take that next step together. At the end of the day, for us to be the team that we want to be, we have to put it all together when everybody’s there.”
Bagley has been plagued by injuries since he came into the league after the Kings used the No. 2 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft to select him over the likes of Luka Doncic, Trae Young and Jaren Jackson Jr. Just weeks after being drafted, Bagley was injured in his Las Vegas Summer League debut, suffering a minor “tweak” of his right groin and hip flexor that caused him to miss the rest of summer league.
Bagley then missed 20 games due to injuries as a rookie in 2018-19, including 11 games in late December and early January due to a bone bruise in his right knee and five games in March due to a sprained left knee. He has already missed 22 games this season after breaking his right thumb in the season opener against the Phoenix Suns, an injury that sidelined him for seven weeks.
Kings upcoming schedule
Dec. 28 vs. Phoenix Suns, 6 p.m.
Dec. 31 vs. Los Angeles Clippers, 2 p.m.
Jan. 2 vs. Memphis, 7 p.m.
Jan. 4 vs. New Orleans, 7 p.m.
Jan. 6 vs. Golden State, 7 p.m.
This story was originally published December 28, 2019 at 6:11 PM.
