Thunder's Chet Holmgren suffers pelvic fracture on hard fall

OKLAHOMA CITY --  Thunder star Chet Holmgren left Sunday's 127-116 loss to the Golden State Warriors because of injury, and the team later announced he suffered a pelvic fracture.

The Thunder detailed the injury as a right iliac wing fracture and said an update on Holmgren's status will be provided in eight to 10 weeks. The team said Holmgren is expected to return this season.

Holmgren took a hard fall when he went to challenge an Andrew Wiggins drive midway through the first quarter. After a midair collision, Holmgren fell on his right side.

The Thunder big man remained on the floor in apparent pain for a moment before needing help off the court and into the locker room. He didn't put any weight on his right leg as he left with 6:50 to go in the first quarter.

Holmgren exited with four rebounds and no points. Through his first nine games, he had averaged 18.2 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.9 blocks. He has 26 blocks this season, second most in the NBA, trailing only  Victor Wembanyama. The Thunder are 8-2 after Sunday's loss.

Without the No. 2 pick of the 2022 draft, the Thunder had to use small lineups against the Warriors. Backup center Isaiah Hartenstein has been sidelined to start the season because of a small nondisplaced fracture in his left hand.

His teammates were concerned about Holmgren's injury before details were announced.

"It's hard [to see],"  Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said. "Hopefully he's OK."

Jalen Williams said that if Holmgren were to miss an extended amount of time, the Thunder could adapt.

"It's not the first time that we have done it," Williams said. "So looking forward to the challenge on that."

This is Holmgren's second major injury. He missed the first NBA season after he was drafted because of a Lisfranc injury. He played all 82 games last season.

The Thunder face the LA Clippers on Monday in Oklahoma City.