With training camp set to begin next week, the Washington Wizards already are hurting.
Emeka Okafor is out indefinitely with a herniated disc in his neck and Chris Singleton will be sidelined 6-8 weeks after undergoing surgery to repair a broken foot, the team announced Wednesday.
Okafor had experienced discomfort in his neck and an MRI revealed the disc problem. The center will attempt to rehab the injury, with no timetable offered for his return. He averaged 9.7 points and 8.8 rebounds last season, seeing action in all but three games.
Wizards training camp opens Sept. 28 at George Mason University.
“I have worked hard over the summer and was looking forward to the start of training camp next week, so this is a disappointing and frustrating situation for me,” Okafor said in a press release. “But I have confidence that my teammates and coaches will be able to continue to take steps towards our goal of making the playoffs and that I will be able to do my part to help them once I return.”
Singleton had surgery Wednesday, a day after suffering a Jones fracture to the fifth metatarsal of his left foot during a voluntary workout at Verizon Center.
Singleton, who turns 24 in November, averaged 4.1 points and 3.2 rebounds for the Wizards last season, mostly coming off the bench. The previous season, he appeared in all 66 games as a rookie, starting 51 of them, and averaged 4.6 points and 3.5 rebounds.
The Wizards selected Singleton out of Florida State with the 18th overall pick in the 2011 draft.
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