Nets Bubble-Wrap Rookie Mikel Brown Jr. for Sunday's Game
Fernandez: Mikel Brown Jr. (injury management) ruled out for Sunday. He is not yet cleared for back-to-backs. (via @ErikSlater_)
The are officially treating 20-year-old rookie . like a vintage sports car that cannot be driven in the rain.
Head coach Jordi Fernandez confirmed the point guard is ruled out for Sunday's game against the due to injury management. According to Erik Slater's reporting, the team simply has not cleared their young guard to play in back-to-back sets yet.
Brown has been productive when he actually sees the floor, averaging 12.9 points and 3.9 assists in about 23 minutes a night over his first seven NBA games.
But the Nets are clearly terrified of his medical chart. The kid has a history of back issues dating back to his college days at Louisville, and he already missed time in late October for the exact same problem.
Sitting a 20-year-old for load management feels like putting a screen protector on a Nokia brick, but back injuries are the one thing you do not mess with.
If you are looking at the betting board for Sunday, you now have to factor in a massive usage vacuum. Somebody has to take those shots Brown usually puts up, especially since he has been given the green light to fire away despite some recent shooting struggles.
Expect Brown to be back in his usual rotation role for 's next game after the . Until the medical staff takes the training wheels off, anyone relying on him for fantasy or daily lineups needs to treat every back-to-back like a scheduled zero.