San Antonio Spurs guard Derrick White suffered an ankle injury on Monday against the Washington Wizards and did not return. After the game, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich expressed his disappointment but vowed to move on from the unfortunate situation.
Per Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News, Popovich spoke of White's journey back from an earlier toe injury only to suffer another setback. Popovich is very familiar with challenges and knows they're almost inevitable. And so the next step is to figure out how to push forward without White in the fold.
“It’s been rough. It took him a while to get the rust off and then this happens again, so it has been tough. But other people lose players also and you are expected to move on, and that’s what we’ll do.”
Pop said Derrick's ankle injury didn't look good.
"It’s been rough," Pop said. "It took him a while to get the rust off and then this happens again, so it has been tough. But other people lose players also and you are expected to move on, and that’s what we’ll do."
— Tom Orsborn (@tom_orsborn) April 27, 2021
Popovich succeeded in steering the Spurs over the Wizards, winning in overtime, 146-143. White played just 19 minutes and chipped in nine points, three rebounds, and two assists. He exited the game in the third quarter after landing awkwardly after attempting to block Rui Hachimura's drive.
Derrick White lands on his ankle and can't put weight on it as he's helped off the court (but Bill says he's able to somewhat walk while in the tunnel). Massive blow to the Spurs if he's out longterm pic.twitter.com/3fQelPjyuw
— Ty Jäger (@TheTyJager) April 27, 2021
It's definitely an unfortunate injury. To recall, White has missed 24 games this season due to offseason surgery and COVID-19 restrictions. As Popovich noted, what made things worse was that White was already establishing a nice rhythm. He entered Monday's game leading the NBA in offensive fouls drawn and blocked shots among all guards since the All-Star break.
Derrick White's defense and willingness to put his body in harm’s way puts him 1st in charges drawn and blocked shots for all guards since the All-Star Break 💪 pic.twitter.com/CPF19YGOpm
— Spurs Nation (@SpursNationCP) April 26, 2021
Gregg Popovich and the Spurs will likely release a timeline of Derrick White's possible return. But he'll definitely miss some more games, which couldn't come at the worst time for the postseason-seeking Spurs.
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