Skip to main content
Come Fan with UsSunday, June 28, 2026

Zaza Pachulia injury: Hawks center to undergo season-ending surgery

No more Zaza Pachulia for Atlanta this season as the big man needs surgery to repair his sore right Achilles.

USA TODAY Sports

Atlanta Hawks big man Zaza Pachulia needs surgery to repair his right Achilles and will miss the remainder of the season, the team announced Saturday.

“After thoroughly reviewing the possible options with Zaza, we all felt this was the best decision to ensure Zaza’s complete recovery so that he can be at 100 percent going forward,” Hawks president Danny Ferry said in a statement released to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

After initially suffering the injury in late January, Pachulia has been sidelined since March 3. The team had hoped that surgery could be avoided and that the veteran would be able to return at some point this season, but now he’ll be out for the postseason as well.

With injuries piling up in Atlanta, things have been less than rosy of late, as Peachtree Hoops, SB Nation’s Hawks blog, points out. Still battling for seeding in the East, the Hawks have posted a 7-10 record in March.

Pachulia, 29, appeared in 52 games this season, averaging 5.9 points and 6.5 rebounds in 21.8 minutes per contest.

More from SB Nation:

SB Nation’s Q&A with Al Horford

The Suns are terrible at pretending not to tank

Don’t compare the Heat to a team from 1972

Kobe gets away with game-changing foul | NBA admits mistake

The Celtics and their next generation GM

The best NBA draft prospects of March Madness

See More:

More in NBA

NBA
The LaMelo Ball trade makes absolutely no sense for the HornetsThe LaMelo Ball trade makes absolutely no sense for the Hornets
NBA

The Hornets sold low on LaMelo.

By Ricky O'Donnell
NBA
6 Jaylen Brown trade ideas for Celtics star with rumors swirling6 Jaylen Brown trade ideas for Celtics star with rumors swirling
NBA

Here are six Jaylen Brown fake trades that make sense for both sides.

By Ricky O'Donnell
NBA
NBA Draft grades for all 30 teams’ full 2026 classNBA Draft grades for all 30 teams’ full 2026 class
NBA

Let’s grade every team’s full 2026 NBA draft class.

By Ricky O'Donnell
NBA
LaMelo Ball trade grades for Wolves, Hornets after shocking blockbuster dealLaMelo Ball trade grades for Wolves, Hornets after shocking blockbuster deal
NBA

Let’s trade the LaMelo Ball stunner for the Wolves and Hornets.

By James Dator
NBA
The biggest lessons from the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade sagaThe biggest lessons from the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade saga
NBA

The Bucks waited too long to trade Giannis, and other lessons from the NBA’s latest blockbuster.

By Oliver Fox
NBA
NBA Draft results: Pick-by-pick tracker for all 60 selections in 2026 classNBA Draft results: Pick-by-pick tracker for all 60 selections in 2026 class
NBA

Keeping track of every pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.

By Ricky O'Donnell