Tim Duncan Day-to-Day with Leg Injury

Soobum Im-US PRESSWIRE

What would the San Antonio Spurs be without Tim Duncan?

The 7-foot center sprained his left knee and right ankle in the Spurs 96-86 win over the Washington Wizards on Saturday night for a league-best 10th consecutive win. But the victory was overshadowed by the injury to Duncan, who writhed in pain on the floor for several minutes after being helped to the locker room by teammates DeJuan Blair and Stephen Jackson.

Though, the injury may have looked worse than it actually is.

“He’s fine, he’s fine,” Tony Parker said. “It’s nothing big. I’m sure (coach Gregg Popovich) is going to be very cautious about his knee and we’ll see.”

Duncan suffered the injury to his left leg when Washington’s Martell Webster rolled into the back of his legs trying to grab a loose ball in the second quarter. The two-time MVP dropped to the floor, prompting audible gasps from the crowd.

“That was scary when you see that,” Washington coach Randy Wittman said. “Those are always the ones you don’t want to see when a guy falls into you while your feet are planted on the ground. I just talked to his doctors and the and they said he is going to be fine.”

It’s reasonable to assume that Duncan will sit out for the next few games as a precautionary measure, which could open the door for their competition to nab a few wins in the All-Star’s absence.

The Spurs will face the Timberwolves, Pistons and Nets in their next three matchups. The biggest threat to upend NBA’s best ranked team (per ESPN), is Brooklyn (28-19) who sits in second place in the Eastern Conference’s Atlantic Division.

If San Antonio is to face Brooklyn without Tim Duncan, it leaves a gaping hole in the paint against fellow All-Star center Brook Lopez. The 7-footer is averaging 18.7 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per contest, which tallies an impressive 25.44 PER. It also won’t fair well for the Spurs playing on the road, where they are a human 16-9.

Look for the Nets to steal a win against Western Conference’s best team on Sunday, Feb. 10.