The Brooklyn Nets have been trading away veteran pieces despite remaining on the outskirts of Play-In Tournament contention. On December 15, they shipped off Dennis Schroder to the Golden State Warriors. Last Sunday, Dorian Finney-Smith got dealt to the Los Angeles Lakers. Another player that many expect the Nets to move is forward Cameron Johnson.
The 28-year-old Johnson is in the middle of a strong season for Brooklyn. Unfortunately, one of the league’s top potential trade targets got injured late in Thursday’s outing.
Major NBA Trade Target Suffers Ankle Injury On Thursday
Cameron Johnson Sustains Ankle Injury Late In Thursday’s Win
The Nets won in a surprise outcome on Thursday, defeating the Milwaukee Bucks on the road by the score of 113-110. It was another solid showing for Johnson as he shot 10-16 from the field (6-12 from beyond the arc) for 26 points.
Near the conclusion of the contest though, Johnson turned his ankle. There was just 0.6 seconds remaining in the game when Cameron Johnson’s injury occurred, putting a damper on a hard-fought Nets victory.
According to the New York Post, Johnson told them the imaging was negative. While that constitutes as good news, the Post also stated that he was on crutches and clearly feeling discomfort. While no timetable and the exact injury isn’t known as of this writing, one could expect the six-year pro to be out of action for an unspecified amount of time.
In Middle Of Career-Best Season
It’s not an ideal time (not that it ever is) for Johnson to sustain an injury. Now in his second full season with Brooklyn, the 6-foot-8 forward was putting up many career-highs this season including in scoring average (19.5) and assists (3.0). In his 32 outings (all starts), he has shot 49.6% from the field, 43.6% from three-point territory, and 89.5% from the charity stripe. Those would all be career-best shooting marks for Johnson.
More of a scoring onus has been placed on Johnson. That is because Schroder is no longer on the team (and a recently-returned Cam Thomas is coming off the bench for now). Johnson has responded of late, scoring at least 24 points in three of his last four games.
With the trade deadline just 34 days away, a lengthy timetable on the shelf could cause teams to shy away from attempting to deal for Johnson.
Nets 2nd Injury In 2 Days
As previously mentioned, the Nets traded Finney-Smith (and Shake Milton) to the Lakers. In return, they received D’Angelo Russell and Maxwell Lewis.
Lewis, a 22-year-old forward, made his debut with Brooklyn on Wednesday against the Toronto Raptors. He came in with about four minutes left, and the Nets trailing by a bunch. Lewis connected on a three-pointer, but while heading back to the other end of the court, Raptors center Jakob Poeltl stepped on his foot. Lewis grabbed his left knee, and he was clearly in a lot of pain. His team debut lasted only about a minute.
The only update that the Nets have given is that it is a left knee injury. Lewis was unavailable to play in Thursday’s game, and in all likelihood, will be out much longer.
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