Clippers Provide Disappointing Brandon Ingram Injury Update Before the Season

The 2026-27 NBA season is officially upon us. The Los Angeles Clippers got together for the first time at Media Day, and on Tuesday, they will hold their first training camp practice. There will be plenty of new faces for the Clippers, who hope to kickstart the post-Kawhi Leonard era.

One of the centerpieces for the new-look Clippers is Brandon Ingram. Unfortunately, however, Clippers fans will have to wait longer than expected to see their new star in action.

Brandon Ingram to Miss Start of the Season After Partially Torn Achilles Discovered

Interim president of basketball operations Trent Redden revealed that Ingram will not be ready to start the season after the team discovered a partially torn Achilles during his heel surgery. He added that Ingram will be re-evaluated at the start of the season, per Clippers insider Justin Russo.

Ingram was dealing with a heel injury in the second half of last season. He had to leave Game 5 against the Cavs in the playoffs with heel inflammation and had to miss the last two games of the series. Before then, he was clearly bothered by the injury, leading to his immense struggles.

When he was undergoing the initial surgery in the offseason, the Achilles tear was discovered. Since it's not a full tear, the recovery will be six months shorter, per Redden. Depending on how his re-evaluation goes, he could be back sooner rather than later, but don't expect the former All-Star forward to be back in opening week.

This is a disappointing development for Clippers fans, who were already deflated to start the season. Now, losing one of your two best players to begin the year is not ideal. Plus, there could be a ramp-up period where Ingram is on a minutes restriction or can't play both legs of back-to-backs. This will limit Ingram's ceiling, at least in the first half of the season. This, in turn, will limit the Clippers' ceiling as a team.

Fortunately, it wasn't all bad for the Clippers. Redden revealed that Darius Garland will be ready to start the season. The star guard dealt with nagging toe injuries all of last year, but he seems to have put that behind him. Without Ingram, the Clippers will rely heavily on the 26-year-old point guard to carry the offense.

Ingram's absence also opens up a starting spot. The favorites to start at the forward spots are Derrick Jones Jr. and Rui Hachimura. The backcourt spot next to Garland, however, is still up for grabs.

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