Timberwolves star Kevin Love breaks right hand, out 6 to 8 weeks
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The Minnesota Timberwolves have lost another of their star players before the season even begins.
Kevin Love broke his right hand Wednesday morning while working out and will miss approximately six to eight weeks, team announced.
That means the Wolves likely will play the first month of season without their two best players, as point guard Ricky Rubio continues to rehabilitate following knee reconstruction.
Love suffered a fracture of his third and fourth metacarpal and will be examined by Dr. Andy Weiland, a hand specialist at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, on Thursday.
The Wolves open the regular season on Nov. 2 against Sacramento.
Love averaged 26 points and 13.3 rebounds last year, leading the team in both categories and emerging as the best power forward in the game. He signed a four-year contract in January worth more than $60 million, then played a key role in Team USA's march to the gold medal in the London Olympics.
The injury likely means far more playing time for Derrick Williams, last year's second overall pick. With Love at power forward, Williams worked diligently to lose some weight, reshape his body and work on his ballhandling to try to earn more minutes at small forward.
Williams always has been more comfortable at power forward, so this could be the opportunity for him to make a consistent impact that coach Rick Adelman has been waiting to see from him. Williams impressed coaches with his physical conditioning and aggressive approach to practice when training camp began, but the playing time has still been sporadic.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
