Just as it appeared the Indiana Pacers were nearing the closest thing to full strength all season, more bad news hits.
With Mahinmi sidelined, Lavoy Allen will play a larger role.
Ian Mahinmi, who’s in his third season as the team’s backup center, was diagnosed with a torn left plantar fascia over the weekend and is estimated to be out six to eight weeks.
At best, that has him returning in the middle of January.
The 28-year-old Frenchman suffered the injury in the first half of Friday’s 102-101 loss at Sacramento. He then planned to have an MRI, which clearly provided conclusive evidence that his plantar fascia was torn.
I know, you may be wondering what the heck is a plantar fascia?
According to the Mayo Clinic, it is “one of the most common causes of heel pain. It involves pain and inflammation of a thick band of tissue, called the plantar fascia, that runs across the bottom of your foot and connects your heel bone to your toes.
“Plantar fasciitis commonly causes stabbing pain that usually occurs with your very first steps in the morning. Once your foot limbers up, the pain of plantar fasciitis normally decreases, but it may return after long periods of standing or after getting up from a seated position.”
From covering other athletes who have injured their plantar fascia, much of it is a pain issue. Once he returns, he may wear a special insole that provides cushion and helps to alleviate the pain, at least enough to play.
This is Mahinmi’s second injury in the past few months. While preparing for the FIBA World Cup with the French National Team, he reinjured his left shoulder, and although it wasn’t “as bad as everybody thought,” he was limited at the start of training camp in late September.
Mahinmi has been on the floor for about 18 minutes per game, and what he’s asked to do is pick up where starter Roy Hibbert left off in regards to rim protection, and rebound. He’s good for about five points and six rebounds her game, and though he’s not looked to for offense, he’s made better than 61 percent of his field goals.
Now with Mahinmi out, Lavoy Allen, who’s made the most of his minutes this season, will be called upon to give Hibbert a rest. Allen, No. 1, is a competitor who has a nose for the ball.
The Pacers resigned Allen over the offseason to a one-year deal worth $915,243. And the the fourth-year forward is delivering this season, averaging 6.9 points and 7.4 rebounds, both career-highs.
Head coach Frank Vogel admires the way he plays, but has had a difficult time finding a spot for him in the rotation. A few weeks ago, with the frontcourt intact, Vogel was asked how he might find time for Allen.
“I’m not sure,” Vogel replied. “He’s not going to spend a lot of time on the bench the way he’s been playing.”
I then posed that question to veteran forward David West.
“He’s got to play because he’s a very good basketball player, he’s effective, and he provides something to this team that’s very valuable,” West said.
The Pacers will try to snap a four-game losing streak Monday back home — the start of a six-game stretch over 10 days — against the Atlanta Hawks.
Lavoy Allen back on Nov. 28 — on rebounding his role with the team: