Late Thursday evening, Minnesota Timberwolves fans got an awful update on Naz Reid. The Wolves’ backup big man reportedly suffered a broken wrist during Minnesota’s close loss in Phoenix on Wednesday.
In the fourth quarter of the game, Reid went up for a dunk over Bismack Biyombo and was fouled. Upon landing, he appeared to come down hard on his left hand, holding his wrist and grimacing afterward. Despite this, Naz got up and stepped to the line for his free throws, making one of two shots from the line with what turned out to be a fractured wrist.
Shams Charania reported that Reid will miss a significant period of time with his injury. This news could not have been more untimely for Minnesota, as they have just five games remaining on the regular season schedule before the playoffs begin.
Minnesota Timberwolves center Naz Reid has suffered a broken wrist and will miss a significant period of time, sources tell me and @JonKrawczynski. Tough loss as Reid is in the midst of his best season, averaging 11.5 points and 4.9 rebounds.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 31, 2023
The loss of Naz Reid will be a major blow for the Timberwolves to overcome.
The Timberwolves are coming up on a massive Friday night matchup with the Los Angeles Lakers, who sit just a half game behind them in the standings. In what will be one of the most important regular season games of the entire season, losing such a tough and impactful player like Naz Reid hurts even more.
Beyond the immediate impact of Naz’s absence in Friday’s must-win game, the remaining four games on the schedule will not become any easier with Reid out either. Without his creative and efficient play off the bench, the Wolves will have to rely much more heavily on other role players. The 15.3 points per game on 55/41/73% shooting splits that Reid had been putting up this month do not grow on trees.
Minnesota will sorely miss Naz Reid’s consistent production, as it appears he could be out for the remainder of the season. Had this news dropped two weeks ago before Karl-Anthony Towns’ return, it would have looked like the nail in the coffin for the Timberwolves. Now, it may not be a death sentence for their season, but the Wolves’ margin for error just got that much slimmer.