Get well soon!
Kobe Bufkin, the 15th overall draft pick in the 2023 NBA Draft and the nominal backup point guard for your Atlanta Hawks, has now seen his season come to an abrupt end.
The Atlanta Hawks announced today that Bufkin will undergo shoulder surgery next month, something that will keep him out the rest of the season.
Per the Atlanta Hawks this afternoon:
After continued evaluation and additional medical opinions, guard Kobe Bufkin and the Hawks have determined that Bufkin will undergo surgery to address right shoulder instability on January 7, 2025. He will miss the remainder of the 2024-25 season and is expected to make a full recovery for the 2025-26 season.
Bufkin missed a large chunk of his rookie season largely due to a fractured left thumb as well as a later toe injury. He eventually returned to drop a 40-piece for the College Park Skyhawks, among other strong performances in the G League, and then came off the bench for 17 games with the Hawks last season, averaging 4.8 points and 1.6 assists per game.
The Michigan guard got off to an inauspicious start to his second season as well, unfortunately. Prior to the start of the regular season, Bufkin suffered a right shoulder subluxation, i.e. a partial dislocation of a bone from his joint. He returned to appear in 10 games this season, averaging 5.3 points and 1.7 assists per contest. This surgery seems directly related to that issue that plagued him this summer and fall.
Thus, his sophomore season has already come to close. Here’s to a full recovery for him and being ready to roll in 2025.