Aldridge has surgery on thumb; out 8 weeks

[DiamondThief]

May 18 -- Blazers forward LaMarcus Aldridge is out for eight weeks after undergoing surgery on his left thumb today, the team announced. He should be able to return to regular basketball activities by mid July.

Aldridge suffered a ligament tear in his left thumb while swiping down on a ball against DeMarcus Cousins during the Blazers win against Sacramento on Jan. 19. It was announced on Jan. 22, following an MRI, that he would have surgery to reattach the ligament. However, after testing the thumb in a splint at the practice facility on Jan. 24. has informed the team that he wished to postpone surgery and play with the splint.

He averaged 23.6 points and 10.3 rebounds (while shooting 47 percent from the field and 82.7 from the line) for the remainder of the season as the Blazers went 20-13 over that span and won the Northwest Division. Prior to the injury, Aldridge was averaging team highs of 23.2 points and 10.2 rebounds for the Blazers, who were 31-12 at that point in the season. He scored 10 points and had two steals before leaving the game against the Kings.

He also played in his fourth consecutive NBA All-Star Game as a starter for the West, scoring a personal ASG high of 18 points while shooting a blistering 4-4 from three-point range.

“I just want to try and play with it,” Aldridge told Yahoo Sports in a text message on Jan. 24 after making the decision to play with the splint. “We are having a good season and I want to keep it going. I’m going to try and play with it, if I can, and go from there.”

The ninth-year power forward will become a free agent at 9 p.m., June 30 (PT). He is on record as saying he wants to become the best Blazer in team history and would be interested in re-signing with the Blazers. However, he is expected to listen to offers from some other teams with interest in him.

Aldridge became the leading rebounder in team history on March 20 against Orlando, and is nearing several other major statistical categories.

He ranked number one in Kasey's Top Blazers Moments of 2014-15 for his decision to play with the torn ligament in his thumb.

- ANM


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