Nerlens Noel has been ruled out of Saturday’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Thunder announced that Noel underwent a “successful procedure to repair a fracture of the zygomatic arch of his left cheek” and that his status will be re-evaluated next week.
Injury update: Nerlens Noel underwent a successful procedure to repair a fracture to the zygomatic arch of his left cheek. He will miss tonight’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves and his status will be updated next week.
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) January 25, 2020
Noel sustained the injury when he took an accidental shot from teammate Danilo Gallinari during Friday’s win over the Atlanta Hawks. He did finish with 10 points and eight rebounds in 25 minutes of game time.
As noted by Erik Horne of The Oklahoman, it’s the same injury that Russell Westbrook had in 2015.
No Nerlens Noel tonight against the Timberwolves after undergoing surgery to repair the zygomatic arch in his left cheek. Noel was accidentally hit by teammate Danilo Gallinari in Friday's win against the Hawks.
This is the same injury Russell Westbrook had in 2015. pic.twitter.com/dVQMCyUW2d
— Erik Horne (@ErikHorneOK) January 25, 2020
Noel has struggled with injuries as of late.
He missed six straight games with a sprained left ankle after he injured it during the third quarter of Oklahoma City’s win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Jan. 4. Noel made his return in OKC’s loss to the Lakers on Jan. 17, and both games of the back-to-back, scoring 15 points in 19 minutes against the Trail Blazers.
When he’s been healthy, Noel has been incredibly efficient.
He’s leading the team in shooting percentage at 67.6%, averaging 8.2 points in 38 games with six starts.
Due to recent injuries to Steven Adams, Noel has played a more pivotal role inside for Oklahoma City in the last week.
In Wednesday’ win over the Orlando Magic, Noel went 7-of-10 from the floor, with six of his seven makes being dunks.
Without Adams and Noel on Friday, Mike Muscala came off the bench to score 14 points in 20 minutes, hitting 4-of-6 from beyond the arc. It’s the first time in his career that Muscala has made four or more 3-pointers in consecutive games.
Mike Muscala is on 🔥🔥🔥
First time in his career making 4+ three-pointers in back-to-back games. (That's 8 three's in 33 minutes!!) pic.twitter.com/HQYKCOGeN1
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) January 25, 2020
With Steven Adams questionable to return, the Thunder could be lacking in size on Saturday night when they square off against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The last time the two played, the Wolves were without Karl-Anthony Towns.
Back in the starting lineup, Towns scored 30 points in 28 minutes in a loss to Houston on Friday night. The Timberwolves have lost eight straight coming in Saturday’s game against Oklahoma City.