It’s never good news when your best player is battling an injury.
It’s even worse when the diagnosis is currently unknown and the head coach is rather vague about the status of the player.
That player is Oregon Ducks junior forward Dillon Brooks, who isn’t working out with the team this summer as he deals with a foot injury.
“He has had a problem with his foot so we have held him out,” Oregon coach Dana Altman said Tuesday morning. “He is still under evaluation to see what the next step is.”
Altman said Brooks does not have a broken foot, but was unsure if the injury would linger into the season.
“It is too early to tell,” Altman said. “I have not heard from the doctors one way or another. We are trying to give him and the doctors time to figure out which way to go.”
The good news is that this injury is not a broken foot. The bad news is that Altman did not dismiss the possibility of him missing time during the regular season.
Brooks is a veteran by now. He’s knows the nuances of college basketball and will be a force in the Pac-12 regardless of how much time he misses this summer.
Not having Brooks on the floor in mid-July is not a huge burden. However, if that slips into September, October and then finally into the start of the season in November it could be greatly impactful.
Oregon fans don’t overreact though because again it’s early. We are still in the midst of summer workouts and the doctors are still checking up on Brooks. This is merely something to keep an eye on, as it’s not time to start fretting just yet.
The 2016-17 season will be the Ducks’ best chance to make their first Final Four since 1939. They are deep, talented, athletic and experienced (especially after making the Elite Eight last year and losing to Oklahoma.
And the guy that leads the charge is Brooks, so they do need him in the fold – preferably for the entire year.
Brooks averaged 16.7 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game last season, while he shot 47 percent from the field and 34 percent from long range. The Mississauga, AB native is versatile enough to play the three or the four position, although, when he plays the four, Oregon is capable of attacking multiple mismatches.
Brooks can stretch the floor with his ability to hit from deep, can put the ball on the deck and create at the rim, and is one of the more competitive college basketball players on the planet. Brookes plays the game with ease, sort of the same kind of ease of filling out this sign up bonus.
The Ducks need Brooks, but it’s not time to panic..just yet.