What the Jared Sullinger injury means for the Toronto Raptors

The season has yet to tip off, but the Toronto Raptors find themselves already missing a piece of their starting core.

The Raptors announced on Sunday that power forward Jared Sullinger would require foot surgery ahead of the season opener on Wednesday. Sullinger, an off-season acquisition signed to a one-year deal, will have a screw “inserted into the fifth metatarsal in his left foot,” a press release reads, which is a preventative measure to “alleviate symptomatic stress reactions.”

Yahoo Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski, who first reported the news, suggested he would miss, at a minimum, the first several weeks of the season. On Monday, Raptors president Masai Ujiri told reporters he could be out for two to three months.

With Sullinger sidelined, the Raptors find themselves with a hole in the front court, already an area of supposed weakness for the team. What the injury for Sullinger means is more minutes for both rookie Pascal Siakam and veteran Patrick Patterson, coach Dwane Casey told reporters Monday.

The Raptors picked Siakam with their 27th overall pick in this summer’s draft and the 6-foot-9 rookie was expected to slot into the lineup behind the team’s more experienced players. But without Sullinger, the Raptors may be forced to accelerate Siakam’s promotion. In preseason action, the 22-year-old from Cameroon has started at the power forward position in the last four games, and the same could be true as the season kicks off.

Casey also has the option to start Patterson in the four spot instead to open the season, which seems the more clear solution. However, Patterson excelled in his reserve role last season, as a leader on the team’s second unit. With Sullinger out, Casey will have the option to bump Patterson into the starting five, or, for continuity’s sake, keep him in his usual reserve spot, which is a role he relishes anyway.

Casey told reporters that the Raptors could go “back and forth” between Siakam and Patterson, but indicated that the veteran is the leading choice to start come Wednesday.

Sullinger’s absence hurts the most, but the Raptors are far from healthy to start the 82-game marathon. Delon Wright is on the injured list, still recovering from off-season shoulder surgery, while Lucas Nogueira is dealing with an ankle injury after rolling it during Toronto’s final preseason game.

DeMarre Carroll, who missed significant time last season with injuries, is slowly progressing along, while Terrence Ross is banged up due to a knee injury. Of course, ailments adding up is not an ideal way to kick off the year, but to the Raptors' benefit, it’s often how you end the season, rather than how you start it that matters.