FILE - In this July 2, 2019, file photo, Cleveland Cavaliers forward Dylan Windler pulls down a rebound during the first half of an NBA Summer League basketball game against the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City. Windler broke his left hand in the season opener, another medical setback for a promising player.The team said Thursday, Dec. 24, 2020, that Windler suffered a fourth metacarpal fracture when he took a hard fall in the third quarter against Charlotte. X-rays after the game were negative, but further tests revealed the fracture. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)
The Associated Press
CLEVELAND (AP) - Cavaliers rookie forward Dylan Windler broke his left hand in the season opener, another unlucky medical setback for the promising player.
The team said Thursday that Windler suffered a fourth metacarpal fracture (on his ring finger) when he took a hard fall in the third quarter against the Charlotte Hornets. X-rays after the game were negative, but further tests revealed the fracture.
Windler, who missed last season with a lower leg stress fracture he sustained before preseason training camp, will be re-evaluated in a week. The team said only that he will begin a rehab program and did not provide any timeline for his return.
It's an unfortunate development for Windler, the former Belmont star taken with the No. 26 pick in 2019. Cleveland has high hopes for the 6-foot-6 shooter and exercised the third-year option on his contract before the opener.
Windler was making a strong move to the basket and was in the air when he was hit by Charlotte's Gordon Hayward and crashed in the foul lane. Cavs center Javale McGee covered his head after seeing Windler go down.
Windler scored three points in nine minutes before getting hurt.
The Cavs held on to beat the Hornets 121-114. They play at Detroit on Saturday before hosting the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday.
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Cleveland Cavaliers' Dylan Windler looks down at his hand as he walks off the court after breaking his left hand in the season opener in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Charlotte Hornets, Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2020, in Cleveland. The team said Thursday that Windler suffered a fourth metacarpal fracture when he took a hard fall in the third quarter against Charlotte. X-rays after the game were negative, but further tests revealed the fracture. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)
The Associated Press
Cleveland Cavaliers' Dylan Windler drives to the basket in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Charlotte Hornets, Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2020, in Cleveland. Windler broke his left hand on this play in the season opener, another medical setback for a promising player. The team said Thursday that Windler suffered a fourth metacarpal fracture when he took a hard fall in the third quarter against Charlotte. X-rays after the game were negative, but further tests revealed the fracture. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)
The Associated Press