Jones Expected to Miss a Month After Ankle Injury
SEATTLE – John Kel Jones from Liberty Center will likely be sidelined for at least a month due to a re-injured right ankle, as announced by the team on Saturday.
This situation could keep him off the court until the WNBA All-Star Weekend, which is scheduled for July 18-19. I mean, that’s quite a stretch, right?
Jones returned to New York on Friday for further examinations, while the rest of the team headed to Seattle.
Additional testing, including scans, indicated that there are no long-term injuries, according to the team’s report. However, it appears he’ll be out for around 4 to 6 weeks due to this ankle issue.
Jones experienced the injury during the second quarter of a recent loss to the Barclays Center, where the score was 89-81. He left the game at 8:35 and went directly to the locker room.
After the game, he was spotted wearing a walking boot, which really makes you ponder the extent of the injury.
This latest injury comes just two days after he had returned to action following an earlier sprain that had occurred against the Mystics on June 5th.
It’s definitely a tough hit for the team, which has lost two of its last three games and is mid-road trip with a looming game against the Storm on Sunday.
It’s evident that the team needs Jones—especially given his defensive skills. Without their key rebounder, the entire squad will have to step up their aggressiveness on the boards.
Nyara Saverly is expected to fill in for Jones while he’s out. Interestingly, Saverly had initially intended to participate in Eurobasket but opted to stay back after dealing with knee concerns that caused her to miss six of the first eight games.
In her recent appearances, she hasn’t shown any signs of struggle, averaging 7 points and 5 rebounds with an impressive shooting percentage of 56.7% across six games.
Additionally, the team will need to lean more on Isabel Harrison. New York has nine games to navigate before the All-Star break, so there’s a lot resting on their shoulders.
