Monta's going to be in street clothes for awhile.
Just reported on ESPN.com that Monta Ellis is going to be out at least 3 months!
In the latest blow during a difficult summer for Golden State, ESPN.com has learned that Ellis -- just awarded one of the biggest pay raises in league history -- will be sidelined at least three months, possibly four, after suffering a severe high ankle sprain in his hometown of Jackson, Miss.
Uh oh...
This was supposed to be the duldroms of the offseason, nothing going on. All the free agency and trades seemed to finish in July. Then BAM, out of nowhere comes this story.
So what does this all mean?
Monta won't be back until at least the start of December meaning he misses the first month of the season and training camp. If he misses more than that, we may not seem him back on the court until January 2009. And we may not see him fully healthy until next season. With that beginning schedule loaded with road games and without our #1 scoring option for up to a 1/3 of the season, you can kiss the playoffs goodbye. Hanging around .500 without Monta? I'll pray, but it's doubtful.
I'm not sure where the Warriors go from here. Without making any moves, it means that Marcus Williams, Kelenna Azubuike, CJ Watson, and Marco Belinelli get a chance to prove that they belong in the rotation. I'm sure Nellie will give each of them ample opportunities to show what they can do. Corey Maggette and Stephen Jackson should get a slight bump in minutes as well - not good for the wear and tear over the course of a season.
Someone's going to have to step up, whether it's one of those bench guys, Maggs and/or Jax, or Mullin with a trade.
Geez, what if we see Nellie go big? Jax at 1, Maggs at 2, Al at 3, BWright at 4, Biedrins at 5. Okay not likely, but what if?
Thanks to bojangles408 for posting this so quickly. I hid the fanpost to keep this on the main page and not have duplicate stories. Check out his original fan post after the jump.
EDIT: Geez I didn't even see dong4ce's post already rec'd to the top of the recommended fanposts, see Sources: Warriors' Ellis is out at least 3 months because of ankle injury. Lots of good comments over there. Thanks for posting that dong4ce! Uh interesting screen name.
WORST DAY OF OUR LIVES: MONTA INJURED
What we've never wanted to happen has now just happened and will possibly ruin our whole season. It looks like we need to start thinking long and hard about our new guys...
Monta has a serious ankle injury and it doesn't look good. Out for at least 3 months.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3556108
Is the season over? Can Williams be our guy? Watson?
Now is the time for our rookies to show their stuff...