The Charlotte Hornets have been decimated with injuries all season. Throughout this season, either Kemba Walker, Lance Stephenson, or Al Jefferson have been injured once one becomes healthy. On Wednesday night against the Sacramento Kings, Kemba Walker returned for the Hornets after an 18 game absence. They look to claim a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference only being 1/2 games behind the Miami Heat. On Kemba’s first game back, Al Jefferson felt a “pop” in his calf.
MRI on Al Jefferson’s right calf showed no structural damage. He will be further evaluated by team doctors.
— Rick Bonnell (@rick_bonnell) March 12, 2015
In Kemba’s absence, Jefferson was averaging a double-double just north of 16 points and 10 assists per game. He was carrying this team through a jam packed Eastern Conference playoff race. Charlotte was destined to make a strong playoff push with their healthy Big-3.
On Thursday Jefferson got am MRI on his calf. The MRI revealed that there was no structural damage to his calf. I can guarantee you that Michael Jordan felt a huge weight lifted off of his shoulders when he heard the news. Jefferson is out on Friday as the Hornets host the Chicago Bulls.
The Hornets are going to need a healthy Al Jefferson to even think playoffs. With only nineteen games left to be played, six of those games are against teams that are fighting for the final two playoff spots in the Eastern Conference. In the entire month of March, Jefferson will be facing some of the leagues best centers until the end of the month when they play Boston. Only 1/2 game behind the Miami Heat, a healthy Hornets squad is a playoff team. The most unlucky team needs some luck towards the end of the season.
