DALLAS -- Trail Blazers guard/forward Evan Turner left Tuesday night's game versus the Mavericks midway through the third quarter with what appeared to be an injury to his right hand. On further examination, it was found that Turner broke the third metacarpal bone in his right hand, causing the guard/forward to miss the remainder of the game, and likely more games going forward.
The injury appeared to occur when Turner ran into a screen trying to defend Mavericks forward Harrison Barnes at the 7:45 mark of the third quarter. After the Trail Blazers called timeout, Turner actually returned to the game and even took a shot, attempting a three-pointer that fell well short, before exiting the game for good a few plays later.
"From what I remember I was just chasing Devin Harris over a screen," said Turner. "From the film, all I saw was I ran into Harrison Barnes I guess, I don't know if it was his elbow or it got bent back or whatever. It didn't feel like crazy pain, just felt like numbing a little bit. I just went back out there and I caught the ball -- Dame passed it -- and I couldn't feel like any type of grip or anything like that. That was pretty much it."
Turner would go to the locker room soon thereafter and after undergoing an x-ray, was diagnosed with a broken third metacarpal bone in his right hand. Turner sounded optimistic about the prospect of the injury not requiring surgery, though further consultation with the team's doctors in Portland will ultimately determine the next step.
"We haven't really discussed it yet," said Turner about how long the injury might take to heal. "The guy that checked it out said it didn't need like it needed surgery or anything... It's just a janky injury, you break your hand. I guess I'm lucky that it wasn't crazy pain, but I'd much rather have a legit injury than chasing someone over a screen."
With Turner sidelined from midway through the third quarter on, Trail Blazers head coach Terry Stotts was forced to play both Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum the entire fourth quarter in order fill Turner's minutes in the rotation. Portland's starting backcourt, along with Allen Crabbe and Maurice Harkless, are likely to see their minutes increase until Turner is able to return.
"We'll miss him," said Lillard. "What he brings to the table is why we signed him. It's something that will be hard to get from one other person, it'll have to be a collective effort from guys having to step up in his shoes and do different things that he brings to our team to help us. We've got to rally around him and we've got to soldier up and prepare to keep moving forward and hope for him a healthy and speedy recovery."
Turner is averaging 9.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 49 games with the Trail Blazers this season. Turner, who recently moved into the starting lineup, is averaging 11.9 points, 4.0 assists and 3.6 rebounds as a starter this season.