Pacers’ O’Neal to miss eight weeks with groin injury

CHICAGO (Reuters) – Indiana Pacers all-star forward
Jermaine O’Neal will miss at least eight weeks with a tear in
his left groin, the team said in a statement.

O’Neal, the Pacers’ scoring, rebounding and shot-blocking
leader, was injured during a game at Cleveland on Tuesday.

The Pacers said surgery was not expected, but O’Neal would
not be able to play until at least the last week of March.

O’Neal told reporters he would not rush his return because
he believes the injury was the by-product of coming back too
soon from a sprained left ankle that sidelined him for three
games earlier in the season.

“I believe I’m going to be back, hopefully sooner than
later, but it won’t be a situation like my ankle, where it was
still swollen and I was trying to play on it,” O’Neal said in
comments posted on the team’s Web site.

O’Neal was averaging 20.9 points and 9.8 rebounds a game.

(Writing by Gene Cherry in Raleigh, North Carolina)