The Minnesota Timberwolves received bad news when it came to the status of Donte DiVincenzo.
The Minnesota Timberwolves walked out of game four with a victory take to a 3-1 series lead about the Denver Nuggets, but it was not without casuality.
Less than two minutes into the game, Donte DiVincenzo suffered a non-contact injury that took him out for the remainder of the game.
DiVincenzo missed a three, and was taking steps back to get back on defense. The ball ended up bouncing towards an open corner, and DiVincenzo thought he could track it down, but unfortunately, he went down with an injury as he moved forward.
He turned away an offer from Jaden McDaniels to help him up, and immediately waved on the medical staff as he grabbed at his right leg. He was eventually helped off the court as it was speculated by the announcers that he was grabbing at his Achilles.
DiVincenzo' Injury Confirmed
Unfortunately for Minnesota fans, the worst was confirmed for DiVincenzo.
It was reported on Saturday night that he suffered a right torn Achilles tendon. The Timberwolves announced that he underwent surgery on Sunday afternoon. The surgery was performed by Dr. Martin O'Malley of the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.
O'Malley performed Achilles surgery on Jayson Tatum last year. Tatum was able to return to the court in ten months.
As of now, DiVincenzo is out indefinitely.
The Loss Of DiVincenzo
DiVincenzo is a big part of the Timberwolves makeup as the defacto starting point guard next to Anthony Edwards.
Since arriving to Minnesota last offseason as part of the Karl-Anthony Towns trade, DiVincenzo has established himself as a strong backcourt partner alongside Edwards with his playmaking and shooting fitting with how Minnesota likes to play.
Starting in all 82 games during the regular season, he averaged 12.2 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.8 assists. He shot 37% from three on nearly eight attempts per game in the regular season.
In the first three games in the series, he was averaging 14.3 points, five rebounds, and five assists while shooting 50% from three on 7.3 attempts.
Replacing DiVincenzo
While it's tough to full replace a shooter on the level of DiVincenzo, Ayo Dosunmu proved to b capable of filling the void in game four when he scored 43 points off the bench.
He shot 13-17 from the field and 5-5 from three. He is expected to slide into the starting lineup in place of DiVincenzo or Edwards, who was also injured in game four.
Bones Hyland is expected to get extended time given his microwave scoring ability. He went 0-5 from three in game four, but is a career 37% shooter from deep.