ESP - Garbajosa confirms injury has ended his season with Toronto

TORONTO (EuroBasket 2007) - Spain’s Jorge Garbajosa has confirmed he will play no further part in the Toronto Raptors’ season after suffering a serious injury to his left ankle in Monday’s loss to Boston.

The star of Spain’s gold medal win over Greece at last year’s FIBA World Championship, the 29-year-old landed badly while trying to block a dunk by Boston center Al Jefferson.

Toronto went on to lose the game, 95-87. Even worse, they lost Garbajosa.

“I need to undergo an operation and the sooner, the better,” Garbajosa told Radio Marca.

“Probably, I will undergo that operation in Toronto. It is certain that I will be out for the rest of the (NBA) season.

“My aim is the EuroBasket in Madrid. But until they open up my ankle, I will not know anything.”

Garbajosa has had a solid rookie campaign with the Raptors and team-mate TJ Ford admitted his loss is a hammer blow.

“I hate that it happened because he brings so much to the table on the defensive end, offensive end, his intelligence, his knowledge of the game,” Ford said.

“For him to go down in this game, it's definitely going to hurt us. Man, it's tough.”

Toronto hold a six-game lead in the Atlantic Division and look likely to earn the third seed in the Eastern Conference play-offs.

However, losing Garbajosa for the rest of the campaign will be a serious setback for them.

They are already playing without Italian rookie sensation Andrea Bargnani, their number one pick in last year’s draft.

Bargnani had an appendectomy last week and will be out of action for a month.

Garbajosa’s departure has coincided with the return to play of another Spanish international, Jose Manuel Calderon.

Calderon has been invaluable at point guard as a starter, or coming off the bench.

As for Spain, the injury could have serious implications for their chances this summer when they host the EuroBasket.

Garbajosa is deemed irreplaceable in the squad because of his passing and shooting skills, and hard-nosed play under the basket.

He was outstanding last summer, with his six made three-pointers in the title game against Greece clinching his inclusion on the all-tournament team at the FIBA World Championship.

Jeff Taylor
FIBA