NEW YORK, (Reuters) – Memphis Grizzlies forward Rudy Gay will miss the rest of the NBA season to undergo a shoulder operation, jeopardizing the team’s chances of making the playoffs.
The 24-year-old had already sat out more than a month of games after partially dislocating his left shoulder in mid-February and team doctors told him he needed surgery.
“There’s really no brace or anything I can wear to make it better. I have to have the surgery,” Gay told a Memphis newspaper (www.commercialappeal.com) yesterday.
Gay last year signed a five-year, $84 million deal to remain with the Grizzlies and had been one of the team’s best players this season.
His loss was a major blow to the team’s chances of making the playoffs. With 11 games to go, they were in eighth place in the Western Conference, just two wins ahead of the Houston Rockets.
