NBA Rumors: Injury Continues To Follow Gordon Hayward In Charlotte

Gordon Hayward was looking to prove that he can still play NBA ball with a new team in the Charlotte Hornets.

Though he came up with a couple of decent performances, the ghost of his 2017 debut with the Boston Celtics lingers to this day.

In a statement issued by the Hornets via their Twitter account, Hayward suffered an avulsion fracture of his fifth finger in his right hand. He sustained the injury in the game against the Toronto Raptors and will miss their match with the Orlando Magic.

There is no timetable as to when he will return and Hayward is being evaluated on a day-to-day basis.

The 30-year-old forward had a decent first game with the Hornets. He ended up with 14 points, six assists, and four rebounds in 24 minutes of action.

Hayward would follow that up with 11 points, four rebounds, and two assists in the encounter versus the Raptors.

His durability has been in question ever since that horrific injury he suffered for the Celtics right in their first regular-season game in 2017.

The 6-foot-7 forward opted to move to Bean Town after spending his initial seasons with the Utah Jazz, agreeing to a four-year $128 million contract.

Lucrative as his deal may have been, Hayward’s stint with the Celtics hardly gained ground. He had the option to re-sign with Boston for the coming season. However, the word was ripe that the 9th overall pick of the 2010 NBA Draft would likely be traded.

Instead, he opted to sign a new four-year deal with the Hornets worth $120 million. Pundits saw it as a high-risk move given Hayward has struggled to stay healthy in the past.

On paper, the injury does not appear serious for Hayward. He could sit out the rest of preseason festivities with Charlotte preserving him for the regular games set to start on Dec. 22.