National Basketball Association

Warriors lose injured Randolph for extended period

Published Jan. 11, 2010 11:05 p.m. ET

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Golden State forward Anthony Randolph will be sidelined perhaps two months or more with a serious ankle injury.

Randolph, a second-year pro averaging 11.6 points and a team-leading 6.5 rebounds in 22.7 minutes per game this season, underwent an MRI exam Monday on his injured left ankle that revealed a tear of two outside ligaments in the ankle and a sprain in another ligament. He also has an avulsion fracture where the muscle pulled away from a piece of bone, which had prior damage from a previous sprain.

The Warriors said Randolph will wear a walking boot for three weeks and then be re-evaluated.

``I expected it to be a long time and it will be,'' coach Don Nelson said before the Warriors hosted LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday. ``I wouldn't call it season-ending but it's pretty close. A couple of months.''

Randolph left Friday night's 108-101 home victory over Sacramento late in the first quarter with the injury. Randolph collapsed to the floor after Tyreke Evans missed a driving layup at the buzzer and lay on the ground for several moments before teammates helped him off the court.

Randolph had been making positive strides and was given more responsibility recently. He had started the last three games and was averaging 13.7 points and seven rebounds in his three outings prior to getting hurt Friday.

``You'd like to see another three months of him playing consistently and see what he could become this year,'' Nelson said. ``It's a bit of a setback for him. He was moving along nicely in the maturation process. I enjoyed watching his progress.''

During Randolph's absence, the Warriors will rely more on Ronny Turiaf, struggling forward Vladimir Radmanovic and sparsely used Devean George. Before Monday, George had appeared in all of four games for Golden State and hadn't played more than two minutes since Dec. 14.