Raptors' Sullinger out up to 3 months after foot surgery
The Toronto Raptors will be scrambling for answers in the absence of offseason import Jared Sullinger.
General manager Masai Ujiri met with the media Monday to discuss Sullinger's prognosis and offered a rough timeline of 2-3 months for his recovery, reports Josh Lewenberg from TSN.
In the meantime, the Raptors will look to internal candidates to fill the sizeable hole left behind at starting power forward and backup center. The team won't look outside the organization for the time being, although that could change depending on how the season unfolds.
Related: Sullinger's injury leaves Raptors perilously thin up front
One of Patrick Patterson or Pascal Siakam will start at power forward. Head coach Dwane Casey said he's leaning towards the veteran in Patterson for their season opener Wednesday, but there would be a "back and forth" between the two, according to freelance journalist Blake Murphy.
As for backup center, the Raptors would need to lean on one of two unproven options in Lucas Nogueira or Jakob Poeltl to take the bull by the horns. Nogueira projects to get the first crack since he's more seasoned, but he's yet to play any significant role with the Raptors since joining the team in 2015.
Sullinger will have a screw inserted into his foot as a precautionary measure after being diagnosed with a stress reaction over the weekend.