Denver Nuggets forward Danilo Gallinari out for the rest of the season

Apr 4, 2013; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Danilo Gallinari (8) during the first half against the Dallas Mavericks at the Pepsi Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

Denver Nuggets small forward Danilo Gallinari suffered a setback in his rehab of his ACL injury that he suffered April 4th of last season against the Dallas Mavericks. He just recently underwent another surgery on Tuesday to reconstruct the ACL in his left knee. The forward will be out the remainder of the season. Gallinari appeared in 71 games last season for the Nuggets, averaging 32.5 minutes per game while putting up 16.2 points per game, 2.5 assists, and 5.2 rebounds while supporting an efficiency rating of 16.73 according to ESPN.

Here is what general manager Tim Connelly said in a statement via Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post:

"“It was recently determined that the procedure that Danilo underwent on his knee this past summer was insufficient,” Nuggets general manager Tim Connelly said in a statement."

The Denver Nuggets have missed the presence of Gallinari’s shooting and defense and have fallen in the middle of the pack in the Western Conference. Denver sits at 20-20 on the season 3 games back of the eight seed where the Phoenix Suns are currently. Denver has had their fair-share of injuries, including center JaVale McGee, power forward Darrell Arthur, small forward Wilson Chandler, and missed point guard Ty Lawson for some time.

Here is what head coach Brian Shaw had to say about the setback of Danilo Gallinari to Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post:

"“It’s disappointing,” Nuggets coach Brian Shaw said. “The fact that we know how hard he worked rehabbing over the last few months to try to get back for this season. We feel for him, and know how tough a situation that is to deal with.”We’re pulling for him, we’re going to support him,” Shaw said. “I know that how hard he worked to try to get back to this point. That’s only going to help him out in his rehab now going forward. So we’re all behind him. Like I said, it’s disappointing and unfortunate but it’s the hand that we’re dealt and we have to deal with it and help him deal with it as best we can.”"

Gallinari was expected to return sometime this season in November initially, but moved towards a comeback after the all-star break. Now he will sit out the remainder of the 2013-14 campaign while the Nuggets look to battle through the Western Conference without their go-to scorer.

The Denver Nuggets (20-20) will take on the Portland Trailblazers in their next game on the road Thursday night. Tip-Off is scheduled for 10:30 PM ET, 8:30 PM MT and can be seen on TNT.