Oso Ighodaro Exits Early With Hip Injury, Leaving Suns Frontcourt Scrambling

The Phoenix Suns are officially down a frontcourt body for the rest of Wednesday night. Underdog NBA reported that Oso Ighodaro will not return to the game after suffering a hip injury.

If you were sweating out a niche player prop on a Wednesday evening, you have my sympathies. Watching a rotation big head to the locker room early is the quickest way to turn a fun live bet into a mandatory donation to the sportsbook.

"Status alert: Oso Ighodaro (hip) won't return Wednesday. (@UnderdogNBA)"

The most frustrating part for Phoenix is that Ighodaro was supposed to be past this exact problem. He missed preseason action with a hip issue but was cleared and kept off the injury report ahead of the regular-season opener against the Portland Trail Blazers.

This is not just a garbage-time loss for the Suns. Ighodaro was an absolute ironman last season, appearing in all 82 games while logging 22 minutes a night and posting a highly efficient 63.6 true shooting percentage.

He is exactly the kind of cheap, reliable depth piece a top-heavy roster desperately needs to survive the regular season. A lingering hip issue for a big man is the basketball equivalent of a check engine light that you keep ignoring until the car starts smoking on the highway.

Phoenix will have to patch together their frontcourt rotation for the rest of the night. Fans and bettors alike will need to monitor the injury report heading into the weekend, because if this hip problem becomes a chronic issue, the Suns are going to be shopping for size much earlier than expected.