The UConn Huskies men's basketball got a devastating injury update on Thursday, with Joe Arruda reporting that sophomore transfer Nik Khamenia is having surgery on his left foot in the coming days. He will be re-evaluated in 6-8 weeks, but there is no official timeline for his return. 

If he's re-evaluated in 6-8 weeks, that puts him out until basically the new year. And even if he's evaluated positively and allowed to return to play, how long will it take him to actually ramp up and get game ready? That will be even longer.

Without getting too speculative, there's a very real chance that this is an injury that wipes out most of Khamenia's season. It will certainly cost him the entirety of UConn's robust non-conference schedule, which features Duke, Arizona, Illinois, Ohio State and Virginia all still to come.

He was injured on Monday night in a lopsided win over Wagner.

A transfer from Duke, Khamenia averaged 5.7 ppg last season while shooting 34 percent from 3-point range. He came to UConn in the offseason and has averaged 10.7 ppg through three games. He was shooting a blistering 55 percent from beyond-the-arc in wins over Gardner-Webb, Michigan and Wagner.

Well, freshman Colben Landrew figures to step into the starting lineup alongside Braylon Mullins and Silas Demary Jr. Immediate production can come from him, but UConn will likely need production across the board from guys like Jayden Ross and Na'jai Hines.

Everyone will have to step up, including another freshman in Junior County.

Well, this is the $10,000 question right now. Ball, who was expected to miss the entire season after undergoing wrist surgery in the offseason, is now expected back, potentially around a month from now.

While UConn won't rush back the senior sharpshooter before he's ready, his return is now a clear need, as opposed to a luxury.

This team can't hit its ceiling without Khamenia and Ball both not on the floor for large periods of time. If Ball is able to be back by mid-December, he'll participate in much of the Big East season, if not all.

Dan Hurley's team will host the Ohio State Buckeyes on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. ET at PeoplesBank Arena in Hartford. UConn is ranked No. 4 nationally while Ohio State is unranked. The game will air nationally on Peacock.