Hornets guard has fracture in his knee. What that means for Charlotte as season nears

Frank Ntilikina’s regular-season debut with the Charlotte Hornets is going to be a bit delayed.

An MRI taken on Friday revealed a non-displaced fracture in Ntilikina’s left tibia, the Hornets announced on Saturday, sidelining him for at least the initial four weeks of the season. Ntlikina will be re-evaluated in a month, meaning he won’t be available to backup LaMelo Ball when the Hornets host Atlanta on Wednesday to tip off their 2023-24 campaign.

Ntilikina injured himself in the fourth quarter of the Hornets’ preseason loss to Boston on Thursday, crumpling to the floor near the baseline closest to the Celtics’ bench. He had to be assisted to the locker room by Joe Sharpe, the Hornets’ director of healthcare and sports performance, and was initially diagnosed with a hyperexteded left knee prior to undergoing further tests.

Signed to be a potential replacement for Dennis Smith Jr. after Smith left in free agency over the summer to sign a one-year deal with Brooklyn, Ntlikina saw action in all four of the Hornets’ preseason matchups, posting three points, 2.8 assists, 1.5 rebounds, and 1.3 steals in 16.4 minutes per game.

With Ntilikina out for at least the next month, if coach Steve Clifford doesn’t decide to go big or use Terry Rozier at backup point guard, those reserve duties could fall to Théo Maledon. He returned to practice during the past week after nursing a right shoulder injury and could need some more time to get his conditioning right before Clifford inserts him into the lineup.

But Clifford is encouraged by Maledon’s recent progress.

“Théo did a lot more today,” Clifford said Saturday.