Jaylen Wells laid on the court for several minutes before being transferred to a stretcher and taken into the tunnel.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Memphis Grizzlies forward Jaylen Wells is expected to miss the rest of the season after breaking his right wrist and sustaining a concussion and facial laceration in a hard fall Tuesday against the Charlotte Hornets.
Wells is the team’s top perimeter defender and one of the league’s top rookies. He averages 10.4 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. The team expects him to make a full recovery.
“It puts everything into perspective seeing that situation and to see Jaylen there,” Iisalo said after the game. “He’s an incredibly tough kid and had a great season.”
The rookie’s father, Fred Wells, told the Memphis Commercial Appeal that his son was alert enough to ask what the score of the game was. He had pain in his face, jaw and back. After the game, Wells posted a message on Instagram with his arm bandaged in which he wrote over the image, “Go Grizz.”
Wells caught an outlet pass from Ja Morant and went up to the rim, when Simpson inadvertently undercut him from behind after trying to catch up to the play. The contact caused Wells to lose his balance in the air and land awkwardly on his side as his head slammed against the court near the baseline.
Wells was attended to on the floor for eight minutes. Medical personnel placed him on a stretcher and immobilized his head before he was taken to the hospital.
“It’s tough. I threw the pass and turned around and was doing our little touchdown celebration. When I got there, the first thing I saw was blood, and I’ve got a weak stomach,” Morant said. “We’ve just got to stay with him and keep praying for him. It’s next man up. Obviously that hurts. Guys will just have to be ready.”
The game was delayed 23 minutes, including warmup time for both teams. Officials called a Flagrant 2 foul on Simpson after a replay review for unnecessary contact, which comes with an automatic ejection. Simpson immediately bent down to check on Wells after their collision and was visibly distraught while Wells was being tended to in the silent arena.
The Grizzlies won to move into a tie for fourth place in the crowded Western Conference race, but they could still drop as low as eighth.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
