CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Cavaliers announced before the start of the 2019-2020 season that rookie guard/forward Dylan Windler would miss a significant amount of time due a stress reaction in his lower left leg, and after trying to work through the injury, it was determined that surgery was his best course of action.
On Tuesday, Windler underwent successful surgery and the Cavaliers provided an update on him Wednesday afternoon.
“He will now undergo a period of rest and rehabilitation and his return to basketball activities will be updated as appropriate,” the Cavaliers said in a release. “Windler will remain OUT for the season.”
In addition to Windler, the Cavaliers gave an update on ailing center Ante Zizic.
Zizic has been out of the lineup for the last five games after being diagnosed with a vestibular condition, and will remain out of action indefinitely.
“After experiencing symptoms of nausea and dizziness, it was determined by the Cavaliers medical team that Zizic requires a period of vestibular rehabilitation to evaluate the symptoms further,” the Cavaliers said. “His return to basketball activities will be updated as appropriate.”
The Cavaliers selected Windler out of Belmont University with the No. 26 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft.
In four years at Belmont, the 6-foot-8, 200-pound Windler, a native of Indianapolis, Indiana, totaled 1,687 points and 251 assists against 210 turnovers, along with 128 steals, 98 blocked shots and 999 rebounds, including 209 on the offensive end of the floor.
Over 128 games, 97 of which were starts, Windler averaged 13.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steals per game while shooting 66.9 percent from the field, 40.6 percent from three-point range and 76.1 percent at the free-throw line.
During his final collegiate season, Windler averaged 21.3 points, 10.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.4 steals while shooting 65.9 percent from the field and setting single-season career highs for three-point and free-throw percentages (.429/.847, respectively).
In three NBA Summer League games for the Cavaliers, Windler averaged 11.0 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists while shooting 40 percent from the field, but he did not suit up for a single regular-season game because of the injury.
Now in his third season with the Cavaliers after being acquired in a trade with the Boston Celtics, Zizic has been limited to just 16 games this season, where he averaged 4.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, 0.6 assists and 0.4 blocks over 13.6 minutes per outing.
Zizic was shooting 57.1 percent from the field and 86.7 percent at the free-throw line prior to being sidelined with the vestibular condition.