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James Wiseman won't be playing any time soon for the Golden State Warriors after suffering a setback in his recovery from knee injury. Now, the question is: will Steve Kerr and the Dubs shut him down for the season and let him focus on healing his knee to be ready for 2022-23?
On Saturday, Kerr opened up about their plans for Wiseman following the setback. According to the Warriors head coach, they have not made any decision on effectively shutting down the youngster for the campaign. Instead, they are taking it day-by-day and see where he's at in his recovery, per CJ Holmes of San Francisco Chronicle.
Steve Kerr said the Warriors haven’t made any decision to shutdown James Wiseman for the season yet, going to take a day by day approach.
— C.J. Holmes (@CjHolmes22) March 19, 2022
The second-year big man is dealing with swelling in his right knee as he recovers from the meniscus tear he suffered last April 2021. According to a report by The Athletic, the Warriors have “temporarily shut down” James Wiseman because of the issue. He has not practiced with the team the past two days, and it's unlikely for him to play for the Santa Cruz Warriors for what could have been his fourth G League game on Sunday.
Unfortunately for the Warriors, they don't have much time and opportunities left to get Wiseman back to game shape as it currently stands. They only have 12 games left in the season–including Sunday's meeting with the San Antonio Spurs–and if the 20-year-old big man is unable to return in those remaining contests, it will be hard for him to get playing time come the postseason if ever he's able to return by that time.
The Warriors simply cannot afford to give Wiseman some runs in the playoffs when the pressure is higher and defense is tighter. Not to mention that it would be Wiseman's first postseason action if ever he's available.
With that said, it won't be surprising if Steve Kerr and Warriors end up shutting him down for the rest of the campaign and just letting the current roster compete in the postseason. Of course there remains some optimism that the Dubs will see significant progress in the next few days, but fans should not have their hopes high.
