Warriors forward Brandan Wright injured his left (shooting) shoulder during practice Friday and could miss extended time. The team said Wright will undergo an MRI exam Monday to further determine the severity of the injury. Yahoo Sports, citing an NBA source, reported that Wright's shoulder might require surgery, which would sideline him four to six months.
Wright averaged 8.3 points and 4.0 rebounds in 17.6 minutes per game last season and was having a strong training camp.
"I've had better days," Warriors coach Don Nelson said after Saturday's practice. "He might be the best player in camp, or right up there.
"He went down, and that made it a bad day today. But we wish him the best and hope he has a good result."
Wright, who turns 22 on Monday, has had a history of left-shoulder issues. Despite the injury, the Warriors are expected to exercise his contract option for the 2010-11 season. While Anthony Randolph is expected to start at power forward, Nelson said Wright had been the better of the two players during training camp.
"We were just so happy with his performance and his improvements," Nelson said. "We thought he'd really be a factor this year. It's quite a loss for us."
Wright partially dislocated his left shoulder in early January and missed two months, then briefly returned in March before sitting out the final 10 games.
Also Saturday, the Warriors waived former St. Mary's forward Diamon Simpson, a training camp invitee. Simpson, a Hayward High graduate, set the Gaels' career rebounding record as a senior last season.
