Freeland Out 4-8 Weeks with Sprained MCL

By Sam Neter on February 13, 2014

Great Britain and Portland Trail Blazers forward Joel Freeland is out for at least a month after spraining his right MCL in the first quarter of Tuesday’s night’s loss to the Thunder.

Freeland has been a breakout player for Portland this season, after a rough rookie year, averaging 3.3 points, 3.9 rebounds and 13.9 minutes in 51 games this season. His knee buckled whilst fighting for position with two minutes left in the first quarter and he instantly went down in pain.

“I saw him when he went down and I was like, ‘Come on,’” said Blazers power forward LaMarcus Aldridge to Oregon Live, who talked to Freeland on the court after the injury. “He was like, ‘No, I’m done.’ I said, ‘What do you mean?’ He said, ‘I’m done.’ So he thought it was pretty serious, but you never know.”

Freeland could miss anywhere from 12 to 26 games, but if he misses the full eight weeks, it would keep him sidelined until the second-to-last week of the regular season.

“That’s tough,” Aldridge continued, when asked about the possibility of a prolonged absence from Freeland. “He’s definitely grown into his role this year of being that backup center, blocking shots, clogging the paint, and being great for us.”

Image Credit: NBAE/Getty Images

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