UNC Basketball Product Suffers Yet Another Ill-Timed Injury

UNC basketball alum Cam Johnson hasn't had much luck on the injury front in his first full season with the Brooklyn Nets.

Following a solid outing in the season opener, the 2017-19 Tar Heel missed the next seven games due to a calf strain. In early February, after stringing together four double-digit scoring performances in a row, Johnson was out of commission for five more contests while rehabbing a left abductor sprain.

Then, on Tuesday night, the 28-year-old forward, now in his fifth year as a pro since getting drafted No. 11 overall in 2019, sprained his right ankle after landing awkwardly on a 3-point attempt during the first half of the Nets' 112-107 home victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.

And according to Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post, after underdoing testing on Wednesday, Johnson is now a no-go for Thursday night's road game against the Detroit Pistons.

Entering Tuesday's bout, the full-time starter had scored 18 or more points in each of his past three appearances, including a combined 52 points in back-to-back home wins over the Atlanta Hawks last week.

Wrote about why Cam Johnson just had his best stretch of the season, and what the Nets need him to keep doing whenever he returns from his ankle sprain. (Hint: It's not just knocking down threes.) https://t.co/Mo9kPO7N8u pic.twitter.com/uUwFzzZM2Z
— Lucas Kaplan (@LucasKaplan_) March 6, 2024

Cam Johnson is averaging 13.8 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.5 assists through his 49 games this go-round. He's shooting 39.6 percent from downtown.

As for Brooklyn's other UNC basketball talent, backup center Day'Ron Sharpe sat out Tuesday night's game with a right wrist contusion. On Wednesday, though, the Nets (25-37), No. 11 in the Eastern Conference standings but not yet eliminated from postseason contention, upgraded the 22-year-old to questionable for Thursday night.

Coby White Posterizes Fellow Tar Heel, Posts Career-High

Stay tuned to All Tar Heels on SI.com for more updates on NBA Tar Heels and other UNC basketball news.