Eric Gordon Injury Reaggravated In Second Game Back For Clippers

Eric Gordon returned to the Los Angeles Clippers this week after missing 18 games with a sprained right wrist. He helped the Clippers end a five-game losing streak on Wednesday, and looked to take down the Denver Nuggets on Saturday. But a drive to the basket was met with a hard foul from Denver's Timofey Mozgov, and Gordon landed awkwardly on his right wrist. He was unable to shoot his free throws, and went to the locker room for X-rays. The Clippers held on to beat the Nuggets.

Gordon and Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro acknowledged that Gordon will miss additional games, though Gordon told the Los Angeles Times that the pain is not at the same level as it had been with the initial injury. The Clippers are well outside the playoff race in the West, but L.A. has traded its 2011 first-round pick and, as such, has no incentive to lose games at the end of the season.

Gordon has missed 20 games in all this season, and the Clippers are just 4-16 in those contests. In his third season out of Indiana, Gordon has become a brilliant scorer that can both drive and shoot, and he's one of the few great young two-guards in a league becoming more point guard driven. He and Blake Griffin are the obvious building blocks of the Clippers, who should have cap space in the next couple of years to add another piece. The Clippers also own the rights to Minnesota's unprotected first-round pick in 2012.