NEW ORLEANS – Chris Paul’s surgery to repair a torn meniscus was successful.
The Hornets announced through a news release that he’s expected to miss 4 to 6 weeks after Dr. James Andrews performed the procedure in Pensacola, Fla.
“Obviously, this is a tough thing for me,” Paul said. “I have been fortunate through my career as a basketball player to not have suffered many injuries. The main thing is for me to get back healthy and to help this team however I can. Everything happens for a reason and I know I will come back stronger than ever. I have the utmost confidence in Darren Collison to step up in my absence.”
Paul first tweaked his knee when the Hornets played at Golden State on Jan. 27. He furthered the injury chasing a loose ball at the end of regulation in a home loss to Chicago on Friday night.
Until the injury, Paul was averaging 20.4 points and 11.2 assists per game. His assists total is first in the NBA. Earlier this week, he was named Western Conference Player of the Month for January.
“You never want to be in this position to replace a guard like Chris Paul in the middle of the season,” Head Coach and General Manager Jeff Bower said.
Collison averaged 14.6 points and 8.4 assists in his first season out of UCLA when he has started in place of Paul.
