Jazz's Enes Kanter out indefinitely after dislocating shoulder

Enes Kanter has suffered a dislocated shoulder. (Melissa Majchrzak/Getty Images)

By Ben Golliver

The Jazz announced Thursday that reserve center Enes Kanter is out indefinitely after an MRI confirmed he has suffered a dislocated left shoulder.

The No. 3 pick in the 2011 draft suffered the injury during a 103-88 defeat of the Suns in Utah on Wednesday. Early in the second quarter, Kanter went to the floor in pursuit of a loose ball after missing a mid-range jumper. Suns center Hamed Haddadi appeared to land on Kanter's left arm as the two went to the court, and the second-year Jazz big man was in clear pain. Kanter left the game immediately following the scrum and did not return.

The Salt Lake Tribune reported post-game reaction from Kanter and Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin.

"It disconnected after I fell to the ground and the other guy fell on my arm," Kanter said.

"It’s tough, man — he was playing really well," Utah center Al Jefferson said. "His confidence was getting there. That’s part of the game, you’re going to have injuries. He’s a young kid, and he’s going to work really hard on getting healthy. It sucks for him to get hurt at this time of the year right now with him playing so well."

Kanter, 20, is averaging 7.2 points and 4.3 rebounds in 15.4 minutes per game off the bench this season. Seen as one of Utah's core building blocks going forward, Kanter's absence will force Corbin to rely even more heavily on starters Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap and reserve forward Derrick Favors as the Jazz continue to fight for the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference.

With a record of 36-36, the Jazz sit just a half-game behind the Lakers for the final playoff spot in the West with nine games remaining. There are less than three weeks remaining in the 2012-13 regular season; it's not yet known whether Kanter will be available for the Jazz before the season concludes.

Video of Kanter's injury can be seen below.

Video via YouTube user Dave Noriega | Hat tip: ProBasketballTalk