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Wednesday was bittersweet for coach Nick Nurse and the Toronto Raptors as they defeated the Detroit Pistons 112-99 but lost two key players in Marc Gasol and Norman Powell to separate injuries.
“It’s too bad. A win with a heavy price, to be honest,” Nurse described the unfortunate incident, per Ryan Wolstat of The Toronto Sun.
Gasol had to exit the game early after logging in just eight minutes in the first quarter after sustaining what appeared to be a hamstring injury. The 34-year-old Spaniard did not return to the ball game and was seen limping off the arena after the match.
Powell, on the other hand, suffered a shoulder injury after colliding hard against Pistons' forward Blake Griffin who was setting a pick. He was visibly in pain after the hit and had to be helped out of the floor after laying on the floor for quite sometime.
He had nine points, three rebounds, and three assists in 33 minutes of action at the time of the injury.
Nurse, meanwhile, immediately expressed concern for his 3-and-D player since it was the same bothersome shoulder that kept him out of commission last season.
“It’s super concerning (that it’s the same shoulder for Powell),” Nurse said. “He looked like he was in a lot of pain. Both had been playing great. It’s not unlike Kyle (Lowry, who had a triple-double) and Serge that were really in a groove when they went down a long time ago. And (Powell and Gasol, who were both playing their best basketball of the year) were really in a nice groove right now.”
Despite dealing with multiple injuries early in the season, the defending champs are still currently fourth in the East with a 19-8 slate. Kyle Lowry and Serge Ibaka has also missed considerable time due to injuries.
