The Washington Wizards offense cannot catch a break.
Martell Webster, who emerged as the Wizards’ most reliable three-point shooter in 2012-13 and 2013-14, is set to undergo hip surgery that will essentially end his 2015-16 season, according to The Washington Post‘s Jorge Castillo
When Martell Webster was informed he had a partially torn labrum in his right hip at the end of September, he was presented two options: Play through the pain or undergo season-ending surgery.
For nearly two months, Webster tried to play through the pain. He was given cortisone shots and prescribed glasses to help distribute his weight more evenly after doctors told him he had been putting additional stress on his right side. The recipe produced encouraging results and he was on the practice floor for a session the day before the regular season started.
The progress, however, was short-lived and Webster has decided to go the other route. He will undergo surgery Friday in Nashville, Tenn. and expects to be sidelined 4-6 months.
Back issues limited Martell Webster to 32 games last season, a brief stint in which he shot just 26.4 percent from long range. But this season was supposed to be different. Not only did he come out of the summer fully healthy, but Wizards head coach Randy Wittman was, and remains, fully committed to running a small-ball offense—the type of floor-spacing beast that perfectly suits Webster’s gnarly touch as a spot-up shooter.
Alas, Martell Webster won’t have a chance to regain his 2012-13 and 2013-14 form this year. And the Wizards are now down another shooter. Bradley Beal is already dealing with a shoulder issue, and Alan Anderson isn’t expected back until December, as he continues to recover from an ankle injury.
In the meantime, the Wizards are struggling. They’re once again fighting to stay just above .500, their defense is a far cry from last season’s top-five unit, and their offense, ravaged by injuries, ranks just 13th in efficiency, per Basketball-Reference.
Martell Webster, of course, won’t be the difference between a successful and unsuccessful season in Washington. But the Wizards are looking to make a leap ahead of Kevin Durant’s free-agency exploits next summer, and Webster’s outside shooting was supposed to be an important part of that leap.
Now it’s unclear whether Webster, whose contract is non-guaranteed next season, will ever suit up in a Wizards uniform again.
