Kings’ Richaun Holmes will miss games after Magic’s Mo Bamba leaves bloody gash over eye
Kings center Richaun Holmes is expected to miss at least two games after suffering a gruesome eye injury in Wednesday’s 142-130 victory over the Orlando Magic at Golden 1 Center.
Holmes will be out of the lineup when the Kings (11-14) open a three-game road trip against the Charlotte Hornets (14-13) on Friday at Spectrum Center. He is also expected to miss Saturday’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
The Kings said Holmes underwent a successful procedure at Kaiser Permanente to repair a right eye laceration. The team said Holmes underwent concussion screening and was cleared of any concussive event.
Holmes left Wednesday’s game against the Magic midway through the second quarter after getting fouled by Wendell Carter Jr. and Mo Bamba on the same play. Holmes took a shot to the face from Bamba, opening up a bloody gash near his right eye.
Holmes was treated by Kings medical staff on the bench and then led to the locker room for further evaluation, including concussion protocol, officials said. Carter was called for a common foul. Bamba was charged with a technical.
Holmes just returned to the lineup last week after missing one game with a right eye contusion and two games due to illness. He is averaging 14.0 points and 9.3 rebounds for the Kings, who have won three in a row to move up to 10th in the Western Conference.
Interim Kings coach Alvin Gentry was asked about Holmes’ injury after the game.
“He’s going to see the doctor again tomorrow,” Gentry said. “Obviously, you saw the laceration on his eye, and I think there will be stitches involved.
“I think he’s got hit in the face, in the eye, in that area more than anybody in the NBA this year. If I was him, I would be a little perturbed by the whole thing. It seems to happen at the most inopportune times.”
This story was originally published December 9, 2021 at 3:30 PM.
