It looks like the Milwaukee Bucks will be without one of their top reserves for some time. According to Shams Charania of ESPN, Taurean Prince has a herniated disc in his neck and will be out for a “significant amount” of time. Prince had missed the last two games with what was initially deemed a neck strain, and head coach Doc Rivers said yesterday, before the Bucks’ 122-115 loss to the Houston Rockets, that Prince would be out until an MRI could be done. Per a team news release today, the MRI actually happened last week and “further updates will be provided as appropriate.:
There is a wide-ranging spectrum in terms of when Prince could make his return. On the shorter end, the timeline could be a few weeks, as we have seen in the past. While not the exact same injury, back in January, Kyrie Irving suffered from a bulging disc in his back. Thankfully for Irving, it didn’t require surgery, and he made his return to the lineup on January 14, just eight days after the injury was revealed to the general public.
The other end of the spectrum could mean that Prince’s NBA career could be in jeopardy, considering his age. Emeka Okafor suffered a herniated disk in his neck during offseason training after the 2012–13 season at age 30. It took Okafor four years to make his return to the NBA, playing just 26 games for the New Orleans Pelicans during the 2017–18 season at the age of 34. He averaged just 4.4 points per game and 4.6 rebounds, and then retired after that season. Prince will turn 32 years old this upcoming March. Although there is no official timeline for his return, there is cause for concern, considering past examples.
Prince was having a solid season coming off the bench in his second season in Milwaukee, after signing a one-year contract plus a player option this offseason. In the eight games he played, Prince averaged 21.1 MPG, 6.1 PPG, shot 42.9% from three-point range on 3.5 attempts per contest, and was a cumulative +13. We’ll likely see more of Amir Coffey filling in those gaps in the rotation, a heavier workload for Kyle Kuzma, and potentially seeing Gary Harris or Andre Jackson Jr. seeing some spot minutes. We’ll see how long Prince is out, but here’s hoping he makes a speedy and complete recovery.