The San Antonio Spurs received tough news on Monday with regards to starting point guard Dejounte Murray confirming that he has a torn ACL in his right knee .
Murray injured his right knee during the second quarter of Sunday's preseason game against the Houston Rockets. Entering his third season, Murray was a strong candidate to have a breakout season for the Spurs after taking over the starting job from Tony Parker midway through last season. Just 22 years old, Murray is already one of the best defensive guards in the NBA and was coming off a season in which he became the youngest player in NBA history to be named All-Defence.
MORE : Reaction to Murray's injury from around the league
On Tuesday, it was reported that Murray will miss the entire 2018-19 season with the injury according to Jabari Young of the Athletic .
I Been Beating The Odds And Handling Adversity My Whole Life. I Got No Choice But To Bounce Back. Thanks For The Prayers! 🙏🏽 #GodGotMe🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/Aiggb44Pg4
— Dejounte Murray (@DejounteMurray) October 8, 2018
San Antonio's guard depth has taken a big hit as Murray's news comes on the heels of the injury to rookie Lonnie Walker IV. The 18th pick in June's draft, Walker IV suffered a torn meniscus and is expected to miss 6-8 weeks.
With Manu Ginobili's retirement and long-time Spurs point guard Tony Parker now with the Charlotte Hornets, the onus falls on veteran Patty Mills who started 36 games last while averaging a career-high 25.7 minutes per game. In those starts, Mills averaged 10.9 points and 3.4 assists per game. Also likely to see some time at point guard are Bryn Forbes and Derrick White.
The Spurs have made the playoffs in 21 straight seasons entering this year, tied for the longest streak of its kind in NBA history.