Rudy Fernandez out 4-to-6 Weeks

Blazers G Rudy Fernandez will miss 4-to-6 weeks after undergoing a microdiscectomy Tuesday to relieve leg pain caused by a nerve root in lower back. “He can get going right away on conditioning… He can swim, it’s more the impact of running and jumping [that might take longer],” Dr. Rich Edelson of Sports Medicine Oregon said Tuesday. Martell Webster, Andre Miller and Jarryd Bayless should pick up extra minutes in Fernandez’s absence, although Miller isn’t willing to play small forward.

Denver: Kenyon Martin will not play Tuesday against the Charlotte Bobcats because of a dislocated pinkie finger.

Toronto: Jose Calderon (hip) will not play Tuesday against the Timberwolves. Calderon went through shootaround and sounded like he might play, but a hip flexor injury flared up after practice and the Toronto Raptors decided to have him sit. Coach Jay Triano said Jarrett Jack will start in Calderon’s place.

Oakland: Warriors F Anthony Randolph flew to Arkansas to deal with a family emergency instead of New York for Wednesday’s game against the Nets. The team said that it hopes Randolph will be back with the team in the “next couple of days,” leaving his availability for Wednesday in doubt.

Indiana: Danny Granger will miss four-to-six weeks with torn plantar fascia in his right foot.

New Jersey: In addition to drawing the ire of the New Jersey Nets‘ braintrust with his recent posts on Twitter, Terrence Williams appears to be at odds with some of his teammates. Dave D’Alessandro of the Newark Star-Ledger reports that at Tuesday’s shootaround, Williams “seemed more isolated than ever before.” And teammate Rafer Alston added, “Every day he comes in, he just looks like he’s in a funk and he looks like he’s just not there. I asked him yesterday on the bus how he’s doing, and he just had nothing to say. He had this blank look on his face, like he’s just confused.”

Chicago: K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune Tyrus Thomas’ broken forearm is not yet ready to absorb contact. This Friday will mark five weeks that Thomas has been sidelined, and though no return date has been set, it looks like fantasy owners will need to be patient for at least another week or two. Taj Gibson will continue to get the majority of minutes at PF in Thomas’ absence.

Dallas: Mavs GM Donnie Nelson says that Tim Thomas’ alleged involvement in a brawl at Denny’s early Wednesday morning is being “overblown.”
“What I can tell you is that Tim was not involved,” he said. “He’s 30 years old with a wife and kids. When the situation started to escalate, he left the property immediately. Certainly we’re working with authorities and our security folks to get to the bottom of it. But this is something that’s way, way, way overblown.” It is possible that media reports have overstated Thomas’ involvement in the incident, and we’ll continue to track this story as more developments surface.