The Sacramento Kings avoided one injury earlier in the week when De'Aaron Fox's MRI turned up negative. They weren't so lucky on Friday.
Third-year big man Willie Cauley-Stein is out of action for at least the next two games after an MRI revealed a deep bone bruise in his right knee. The 24-year-old center injured the leg in Thursday night's win in Miami when he banged his knee on Heat center Hassan Whiteside's knee brace.
An MRI was negative for any muscle tears or other issues and an additional x-ray on Cauley-Stein's left foot and ankle was negative as well.
Cauley-Stein is having a breakout season for Sacramento, posting 12.4 points and 6.8 rebounds in 27.2 minutes per game, all career highs.
[HAM: Willie Cauley-Stein and the PPP movement]
With Cauley-Stein down, the Kings will turn to a deep stable of bigs, including Skal Labissiere, Kosta Koufos and perhaps Georgios Papagiannis.
The Kings will re-evaluate Cauley-Stein following the team's game against the Pelicans on Tuesday and he is listed as day-to-day moving forward.
