Kings guard will be sidelined 7 to 14 days after suffering injury before loss to Pistons
The Sacramento Kings lost another player due to injury Thursday when guard Chris Duarte was diagnosed with an ankle injury that will sideline him for a minimum of one to two weeks.
The Kings announced that imaging exams confirmed Duarte suffered a moderate right ankle sprain prior to Wednesday’s game against the Detroit Pistons. Duarte has been ruled out for Friday’s game against the Denver Nuggets at Golden 1 Center. He will be reevaluated in seven to 14 days.
The Kings (29-21) were seventh in the Western Conference after suffering a 133-120 loss to the Pistons. They are vying with the Phoenix Suns, New Orleans Pelicans and Dallas Mavericks for the last two automatic playoff berths with the Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors and Utah Jazz looming in the play-in picture.
Duarte rolled the ankle while warming up for Wednesday’s game inside the team’s practice facility. He was seen on crutches in the locker room before the game.
Duarte, 26, is a 6-foot-5, 190-pound guard who has been in and out of coach Mike Brown’s rotation this season. He is averaging 3.7 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 12.9 minutes per game.
Duarte had his best game in a 129-113 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Nov. 19, finishing with season highs of 13 points, eight rebounds and four assists with two steals. He had 12 points, seven rebounds and four assists in a Jan. 2 loss to the Charlotte Hornets. He scored 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting in a 135-130 win over the Toronto Raptors on Jan. 5 before falling out of the rotation.
Duarte was the Pac-12 Player of the Year at Oregon in 2021. The Indiana Pacers selected with him with the 13th overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft.
Duarte was an NBA All-Rookie Second Team selection after averaging 13.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.0 steals with the Pacers in 2021-22. The Kings made a trade with the Pacers in July to acquire Duarte in exchange for two future second-round draft picks, reuniting him with former teammate Domantas Sabonis.
The Kings were one of the healthiest teams in the NBA last season when they went to the playoffs for the first time since 2006 as the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference. De’Aaron Fox, Keegan Murray, Kevin Huerter, Malik Monk, Trey Lyles, Sasha Vezenkov, Alex Len, Keon Ellis and Duarte have all missed games due to injuries this season.
