Hawks’ Onyeka Okongwu Out At Least 4 Games

Atlanta Hawks backup center Onyeka Okongwu will be out at least four games due to left knee inflammation, the team announced Wednesday. Okongwu will be re-evaluated in approximately one week.

Atlanta Hawks center Onyeka Okongwu could return as early as next Saturday against the Miami Heat

The Hawks will be in San Antonio on Thursday for a road game against the Spurs before returning home to Atlanta for a four-game homestand.

Okongwu will miss Thursday’s matchup and the first three home games of that stretch. The earliest he could return would be next Saturday against the Miami Heat.

Through 25 games, Okongwu has averaged a career-high 11.3 points and 6.6 rebounds while coming off the bench behind starter Clint Capela this season. The 6-foot-8 Okongwu is shooting a career-low 54.2% from the field as well.

An @emoryhealthcare injury update:

Center Onyeka Okongwu (left knee inflammation) will be out for the next four games and will be re-evaluated in approximately one week.

His status will be updated as appropriate. pic.twitter.com/HmnDsrXqEU

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) December 18, 2024

A five-year veteran, Okongwu was the No. 6 overall pick for the Hawks in the 2020 NBA draft out of USC. Last season with Atlanta, he averaged 10.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 1.1 blocks in 55 games (eight starts).

In Atlanta’s 120-116 season-opener victory against the Brooklyn Nets on Oct. 23, he recorded a career-high 28 points on 11-of-12 (91.7%) shooting from the field and all six made free throws.

Okongwu’s four-year, $62 million rookie-scale extension, which he signed in October 2023, began this season.

Kobe Bufkin will undergo season-ending shoulder surgery

The Hawks also added that second-year guard Kobe Bufkin will undergo season-ending surgery to address “instability” in his right shoulder. The procedure is scheduled for Jan. 7.

Bufkin, 21, partially dislocated his right shoulder for the second time in October. He had missed summer league because of a similar injury. His rookie season was interrupted by injuries, including a thumb fracture and a big toe sprain that kept him out of all but 17 games.

The Grand Rapids native re-injured the same shoulder during a practice ahead of this season’s opener and played in just 10 games before the Hawks decided to shut him down, having last played on Dec. 8.

Bufkin was the 15th overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft out of Michigan. He averaged 5.3 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.7 assists in 10 games (zero starts) this season.