Recovering Parker assigned to Spurs' minor-league team, top draft pick Fultz out injured

Published Oct 26, 2017

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LOS ANGELES - Four-time NBA champion guard Tony Parker has been assigned to the San Antonio Spurs' developmental-league squad as he recovers from left quadriceps tendon surgery, the team announced.

The 35-year-old Frenchman practiced with the Austin Spurs at their training camp in San Antonio and was expected to do so again on Friday. The camp runs through Saturday ahead of Austin's November 3 opener.

Parker suffered a torn quadriceps tendon in last season's Western Conference playoff semi-finals. He was cleared by doctors to participate in the Spurs' training camp last month and is slowly being prepared to return to the NBA club he helped to league crowns in 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2014.

Parker averaged 10.1 points in 63 regular-season games last season, his lowest total since his 2001-02 NBA rookie campaign.

Parker has career averages of 16.2 points on 49.3 percent shooting and 5.8 assists in 1,143 career regular-season games and 18.2 points and 5.1 assists in 221 career playoff games.

Dejounte Murray, a 21-year-old American, has replaced Parker in San Antonio's starting lineup. He's averaging 13.3 points and team highs of 9.7 rebounds and 4.7 assists so far this season.

Meanwhile, Philadelphia 76ers guard Markelle Fultz, the number one pick in this year's NBA Draft, will miss the next three games with a sore right shoulder.

Fultz will missed home game against Houston will also sit out games at Dallas on Saturday and at Houston on Monday, but will travel with the club before being reevaluated Tuesday.

In his first four games for the 76ers, Fultz has averaged 6.0 points on 9-of-27 shooting and connected on only 6-of-12 free throw attempts.

Fultz, 19, scored only two points in 16 minutes during Monday's victory over the Detroit Pistons, a far cry from the 23.2 points he averaged last season for the University of Washington.

The 76ers made a trade deal with the Boston Celtics to move from third to first on the selection list in June's NBA Draft so they could select Fultz.

AFP

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