Chris Paul will miss 6-8 weeks after undergoing thumb surgery

The Clippers announced that Chris Paul will undergo surgery on Wednesday to repair a torn ligament in his left thumb. It is likely that Paul will be out six to eight weeks for recovery.

Paul left the game against the Thunder on Monday night with about three minutes left in the first half. While guarding Russell Westbrook and trying to fight through a screen, Paul’s hand hit Westbrook as Westbrook attempted to draw contact on the play.

You could immediately see the frustration from Paul after the play knowing he had injured his thumb.

Paul is not one to hide his emotions and his immediate frustration was similar to last April when Paul broke his hand in the playoffs. On Monday night, X-Rays were negative and Paul was ruled out of the rest of the game with a thumb sprain. It was hopeful that the injury would be minor and Paul would not miss much, if any time.

After an MRI on Tuesday, the Clippers got news that they would be without their point guard for at least the next six weeks. Paul has already missed a handful of games this season with a hamstring injury, while Blake Griffin has been out since mid-December after having minor knee surgery. According to the Clippers, Griffin’s surgery was a “routine arthroscopic procedure to remove loose bodies.” He is set to return in January.

Chris Paul is averaging 17.5 points, 9.7 assists, and 2.2 steals this year for the Clippers. The Clippers are 26-9 this year with Paul in the lineup and 2-5 when he’s out, but it should be noted that Griffin was sidelined during that time as well.