Kenneth Faried: Back Spasms Cause Early Exit

Kenneth Faried left last night’s game against the Phoenix Suns in the first half due to back spasms, leaving him questionable for Tuesday’s game.

Kenneth Faried proves year-in, year-out to be one of the Denver Nuggets most solid contributors in points and rebounds. Through the first nine games of the 2015-2016 season, Faried averaged a double-double, 14.4 points with 10.0 rebounds. Outside of a weak showing against the Oklahoma City Thunder in the third game where Faried only accumulated two rebounds, he is a force on the glass, putting up no fewer than eight rebounds in a game.

However, in the first game of the Denver Nuggets’ three game road trip, Kenneth Faried left the game against the Phoenix Suns with back spasms. He left in the first half of play and did not return for the second half, leaving him questionable to play against the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday. The New Orleans Pelicans present a tough matchup for the Denver Nuggets, with Anthony Davis becoming a superstar before our eyes.

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Also, the Denver Nuggets already suffered numerous injuries to their big men; thus, they need Kenneth Faried to get healthy in a hurry. The Denver Nuggets just lost Wilson Chandler for the season due to season-ending hip surgery. Moreover, Jusuf Nurkic still remains “a ways away” from returning to the court. Head coach Mike Malone previously thought Nurkic would be able to play in November, but that looks like a stretch of the imagination.

Joffrey Lauvergne assumed the starting center duties when Nurkic was not ready for the beginning of the season; however, Lauvergne suffered his own injury and remains out of the lineup and missed Saturday’s game against the Phoenix Suns. Although Lauvergne missed Saturday’s game, the Denver Nuggets are optimistic that he might see limited minutes in Tuesday’s matchup. With Kenneth Faried considered day-to-day, the Nuggets need all the help they can get before their matchup against the Pelicans.

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While no new information has surfaced regarding Kennth Faried’s injury, some speculate he was pulled merely as a precaution. The Denver Nuggets trailed the Suns 60-28 entering halftime; thus, it did not make sense for the Nuggets to try and push Faried back out for the second half. The Nuggets have two day before their matchup on Tuesday, so it looks like Faried is more likely to play than not. The Nuggets have two games remaining on their road trip until they return to Denver for four-straight.

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