SALT LAKE CITY — Jazz swingman Gordon Hayward went through a partial practice Monday but felt pain in his sprained right shoulder about 3/4 of the way through and was shut down.
He did not play against Oklahoma City on Tuesday and has been listed as “doubtful” for tonight’s game at Minnesota.
Hayward said he won’t come back until after the upcoming five-day All-Star break.
“Try to get better so then (I can) come back and not worry about it,” he said.
Before Monday’s practice, Hayward was upbeat and hopeful of playing for the first time since suffering the injury in the overtime period of a Jan. 26 victory over Indiana.
He said he went through most of the practice but at one point, as he was driving to the basket, he flipped a pass backwards over his head and immediately felt pain in his shoulder.
“It definitely pinched the shoulder a little bit,” he said. “It was like, ‘This probably isn’t going to work.’”
Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin if Hayward had made it all the way through practice he would have played against the Thunder. Because he didn’t, Hayward will be on the shelf for at least the next six days.
“We don’t want to take the chance of him getting hurt again if we can avoid it,” he said. “He has to get through a practice before he can get a chance to be in a game.
Hayward, who averages 13.5 points, missed his ninth consecutive game.
GAME 53
Jazz 109, Thunder 94
• BEST PLAY: With 5:54 left before halftime Al Jefferson grabs one of his four offensive rebounds and goes up for a put-back. OKC’s Serge Ibaka puts on an athletic show, rising high to swat Big Al’s attempt. Ibaka finishes the night with a whopping seven blocked shots in a losing effort.
• BEST LINE: Paul Millsap scored 18 points to go along with 10 rebounds – five on the offensive glass – six assists and two steals.
• KEY STATS: On a night when the Thunder shot a sizzling 56 percent from the field, the Jazz won the rebounding battle 38-26, which included a 16-7 margin on the offensive end. That allowed the Jazz to outscore OKC 18-4 in second-chance opportunities.
• MILESTONE: The Thunder lost for the first time all season when shooting 50 percent or higher.
• INJURY REPORT: Mo Williams (right thumb surgery) missed his 25th consecutive game. He underwent surgery to repair ligaments in his right thumb shortly after Christmas and has not yet been cleared to resume basketball activities. He’ll be reevaluated near the end of the All-Star break and the team then formulate a timetable. He flew to New York on Tuesday and will have a pin taken out of his thumb later today. … Point guard Earl Watson (right leg bone bruise, stress fracture) has been cleared to play.
• ETC.: The Thunder snapped a four-game winning streak. … The Jazz are now 71-90 all-time against the Oklahoma City/Seattle franchise. … OKC shot 63 percent in the first half but had 14 turnovers. … Kevin Durant scored 33 points, had six rebounds and five assists. He also picked up the first flagrant foul of his career. …
• UP NEXT: The Jazz will visit the Minnesota Timberwolves tonight then look ahead to the All-Star break. Their next game is Feb. 19 at home vs. Golden State.
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