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Indiana Pacers Injury News: Rookie Myles Turner Has Fracture in Thumb, Expected to Be Out Four Weeks

Indiana Pacers rookie center Myles Turner is expected to miss four weeks after suffering an injury to his left thumb in a win against the Boston Celtics on Wednesday. The team announced that the injury, a chip fracture, will sideline the young center out of Texas.

The Indiana front office selected the former Longhorn with the 11th pick in the 2015 NBA draft, hoping to inject young blood to a Pacers' frontline that was expected to part ways with starting center Roy Hibbert, who eventually decided to join the Los Angeles Lakers in the summer.

But Turner is no Hibbert, showing utmost versatility in college with a wide array of offensive repertoire and defensive presence. The kid's athleticism and shooting prowess are much to be desired, something that team president Larry Bird hopes will turn his frontline into a major offensive contributor in a more up-tempo style of basketball. The 19-year-old is to play the role of backup center to veteran French campaigner Ian Mahinmi.

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In the team's 102-91 win over the Celtics, Turner appeared to favor his left hand and tried to immediately go to the bench without waiting for a dead ball situation. Pacers teammate Jordan Hill took notice and committed a foul just to stop the action on the court. Turner was then officially substituted, never to return in the game after just playing for a little over a minute.

The 6-11 center currently averages 7.1 points a game on an impressive 55.3 field goal percentage. His rebounding average of 3.3 in almost 18 minutes per outing though is something that needs to be improved.

Head coach Frank Vogel was quite optimistic from what he is seeing from the young pro so far. "The kid just works so hard and was really growing every day. He'll definitely be missed while he's out."

While Turner is out, Mahinmi's designated backup in the meantime is another veteran front liner in Jordan Hill, who was given a one-year contract worth $4 million as a free agent by the Pacers this summer. Hill capitalized on extended playing time against the Celtics, putting up 12 points on 50 percent shooting.

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