The Charlotte Hornets announced Sunday morning that forward Gordon Hayward will miss the team’s upcoming play-in game with continued discomfort in his left foot. Hayward’s expected to be placed into a cast and will be reevaluated in two weeks.
This also means that Hayward will not play in Charlotte’s final regular season game on Sunday against the Washington Wizards. It’s an unfortunate setback for Hayward, who missed 26 of Charlotte’s final 27 games of the regular season. It’s also the second consecutive season where Hayward will finish injured, after missing the last 25 games and the play-in game against the Indiana Pacers a year ago.
Hayward hasn’t had a fully healthy season since the 2018-19 campaign, which was a year after he fractured his tibia in a gruesome manner while still a member of the Boston Celtics. In his two seasons since joining the Hornets, he hasn’t played more than 49 games in either season, as he’s been in and out of the lineup with various ailments.
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But when Hayward’s healthy, he’s a productive scorer. In 49 games this season Hayward was averaging 15.9 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists while shooting 46 percent from the field and 39 percent from deep. He adds another scoring option for the Hornets, something they will miss as it tries to secure one of the final playoff spots in the East.
Fortunately for the Hornets, they’ve grown accustomed to playing without Hayward over the past two seasons, so it shouldn’t alter anything significantly for them. Third-year forward P.J. Washington has assumed the role as the fifth starter in Hayward’s absence this season, and while Washington doesn’t make up for Hayward’s production entirely, he’s been doing an admirable job. The Hornets also score 6.3 points per possession more when Washington’s on the court than when he’s on the bench, making him a positive asset to have on the floor.
Though the Hornets would ideally like to be at full strength before they face off against either the Hawks, Nets or Cavaliers in the play-in round, because Hayward’s already missed so much time recently it might not make that much of a difference.
