Zalgiris Kaunas received encouraging news regarding Jonas Valanciunas after the veteran center was forced to leave the team’s 112-78 preseason victory over Baku Sabah.
Valanciunas lasted only three minutes after colliding with teammate Marius Grigonis during a first-quarter play.
He immediately grabbed his lower right leg and was eventually ruled out for the remainder of the contest.
Despite the early exit, head coach Tomas Masiulis indicated that the injury does not appear to be significant.
According to Masiulis, Valanciunas even believed he could have continued playing, but Zalgiris decided there was little reason to take a chance during a preseason game.
“He said he could have played, but we didn’t want to take any risks. It was just a bruise to the leg and it doesn’t seem to be anything serious, but they’ll take another look and we’ll have more information. I can’t say anything more right now,” Masiulis said.
Valanciunas remained on the bench with ice on the affected area for the rest of the first half. He did not return after the break, instead spending the second half in the locker room.
The 34-year-old finished without scoring during his brief appearance, ending a strong start to his preseason campaign.
In Zalgiris’ previous two games against Riga Zelli and Juventus Utena, Valanciunas averaged 17 points and nine rebounds.
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