On September 10, Beijing time, according to NBA celebrity Shams, Pacers guard Edmund Sanam suffered a torn Achilles tendon in training. The Pacers then officially confirmed the news: "Sanum is on an indefinite truce because of a torn left Achilles tendon!" "Sanam still has $2.32 million left on his contract for 1 year, but he can't play in the contract year, it's so uncomfortable!
Sanam was the No. 52 pick of 2017 and has been improving since coming to the NBA. In his rookie season, Sanum played just one game and scored two points. This past 2020-21, he played in 53 regular-season games for the Pacers, starting 24 of them, averaging 16.2 minutes and 7.5 points and 1.8 rebounds. He shot 52.5 percent from the field and 39.8 percent from three-point range.
Born on 31 December 1995, Sanam is under the age of 26 and is 1.93 metres tall and a double defender. Although Sanem's efficiency and statistics were good last season, after this major Achilles tendon injury, whether he can return to his previous level and whether the Pacers will renew his contract are all big variables. That's the cruelty of business alliances...
In fact, The Pacers are not the only one in the indefinite truce. Just two days ago, the Pacers officially announced that the team's forward TJ Warren's recovery rate has not been as fast as expected, and continues to be absent indefinitely. In December 2020, Warren suffered a stress fracture in his left foot and was subsequently operated on and reimbursed for the season. At present, he can't play in the early part of next season!
Warren is clearly more capable than Sanum and more important to the Pacers. In the 2020-21 season, he played only four games and averaged 15.5 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. Look at his previous three seasons: 65 games in 2017-18, averaging 19.6 points per game; 36 games in 2018-19, averaging 18 points per game; and 67 games in 2019-20, averaging 19.8 points per game.
In particular, in the 2019-20 season, Warren shot 53.6 percent from the field, 40.3 percent from three-point range, and 82 percent from the free throws. There is no doubt that he is already one of the core of the Pacers. On August 2, 2020, in the first game of the rematch, Warren scored a career-high 53 points on 20-of-29 shooting to help the Pacers beat the digital man 127-121.
The Pacers' last player who scored 50 points dates back to O'Neal Jr. in 2005! In the next two games, Warren scored 34 and 32 points respectively, for a total of 119 points in three games, equaling O'Neal Jr.'s record of 119 points in three games! Warren's four-year, $47 million contract is one last year left, expiring next summer.
Do you know what the Pacers traded for TJ Warren? cash! In the summer of 2019, the Pacers gave away some of the cash in exchange for TJ Warren from the Suns and KZ-Okpala, the No. 32 show. The Suns felt that Warren's contract was too big and traded him to free up salary space. Unexpectedly, Warren played out in the Pacers, and the annual salary of 12 million is a great value!
Throughout the history of the Pacers, almost all of the core players have experienced serious injuries. Remember Danny Granger? Once the boss of the Walkers. He averaged 18.7 points per game in 2011-12 and 5.4 points per game after a knee injury in 2012-13. For the next three seasons, he averaged single-digit points per game and officially retired at the age of 32.
After Granger, George became the boss of the Pacers. In the summer of 2014, George suffered an open fracture of the tibia fibula during team training for the U.S. men's basketball team. It wasn't until April 6, 2015, that he returned from injury. Throughout the 2014-15 season, George played six regular season games and averaged 8.8 points per game. Of course, George is still an All-Star today!
In the summer of 2017, the Pacers sent George away and got Oladipo and Sabonis Jr. Audi also played the team boss level in the Pacers: in 2017-18, he averaged 23.1 points, 5.2 boards and 4.3 assists per game, and led the league with 2.4 steals. On January 29, 2019, Oladipo underwent surgery on his right knee and did not come back a year later.
Oladipo was clearly not as lucky as George. In the 2020-21 season, Audi played for the Pacers, Rockets and Heat, making 33 appearances, averaging 19.8 points, 4.8 boards and 4.6 assists in 1.4 steals. Oladipo has turned down 4-year, 80 million contract extensions for the Pacers and 45.2 million for the Rockets for 2 years, and this summer he renewed his contract with the Heat for 1 year 2.4 million.
In May, Oladipo underwent quadriceps tendon surgery and is not expected to return until December. I wish Audi, Warren and Sanum a speedy return!