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The Golden State Warriors recently announced that second-year big man Alen Smailagić underwent successful surgery on Monday morning to repair a minor right meniscal tear. Despite the surgery, the 2019 second-round pick will be re-evaluated in just four weeks.
Warriors forward Alen Smailagić, who has not played in the first six games of the regular season due to a minor right meniscal tear, underwent successful surgery earlier today: pic.twitter.com/YOSITQoRL1
— Warriors PR (@WarriorsPR) January 4, 2021
The Warriors revealed a few days ago that Smailagić’s meniscus tear would require surgery, though they didn’t publicly specify the date. Even though he entered the regular season with the injury, they had held off on surgery hoping that Smiley’s body would respond well to rehab and physical therapy. Unfortunately it didn’t, and surgery became the best option. Still, coach Steve Kerr said that he only expected Smailagić to miss weeks rather than months.
It’s a rough break for Smailagić, who might have gotten some playing time if healthy after Marquese Chriss broke his leg. The 20 year old has team a team option after this season, so it would be great if he could get on the court and prove that he belongs in the NBA.
As a rookie, Smailagić averaged 4.2 points, 1.9 rebounds, and 0.9 assists per game in 9.9 minutes. He played in just 14 games.