Austin Rivers to miss at least two more weeks with Achilles injury

LA Clippers guard Austin Rivers will be out for at least two weeks as he rehabs a right ankle injury.

The LA Clippers will be down another starter for the next couple weeks. Austin Rivers will miss at least two weeks with a right Achilles injury, according to the Clippers. Rivers injured his ankle in the Clippers December 29 victory against the Los Angeles Lakers.  The team announced Rivers suffered a posterior right ankle impingement. He will be re-evaluated in two weeks.

The Clippers have played down starters all season, so hopefully they can continue playing well in rivers absence. The Clippers are currently riding a league-high four game win streak sparked by the return of Blake Griffin.

With Rivers out, expect leading Sixth Man of the Year candidate (and All-Star hopeful) Lou Williams to shoulder more of the offensive load. The Clippers rookie guard trio of Sindarious Thornwell, Jawun Evans and C.J. Williams should also see more action. All three rookies have seen some time in the starting lineup for LA during this injury-riddled season.

Austin Rivers is currently is the midst of a career year and his play will certainly be missed in the immediate future.  Rivers is averaging a career-high in points (15.8), assists (3.6), steals (1.5), three-point percentage (40.5%) and minutes (32.7).

The timing of the injury is certainly unfortunate, with the Clippers finally stringing together some solid victories. However, if any team has proven its capability to survive an injury, it’s the Clips. The team will need him to get back as quickly as possible as their January schedule includes several match-ups against playoff caliber teams.