USC’s Collier out 4-6 weeks with injury to hand

• Jeff Borzello, ESPN

  • Personnel WriterJan 11, 2024, 09:56 PM ET Close Basketball recruiting insider.
  • Signed up with ESPN in 2014.
  • Graduate of University of Delaware.USC star guard

Isaiah Collier, a projected NBA lotto pick, will miss out on the next four to six weeks with a hand injury, the school revealed Thursday night.Collier was injured

in Wednesday’s loss to Washington State.A 6-foot-5 freshman, Collier entered the season as the favorite to be picked No. 1 overall in the 2024 NBA draft. Nevertheless, the Georgia native’s campaign has featured a lot of ups and downs, as USC has struggled en path to an 8-8 record. Collier opened the season with 18 points and six helps in a win over Kansas State, and had 23 and 24 points in back-to-back games against UC Irvine and Brown, respectively, in mid-November.

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Over the next 10 games, Collier balanced just 12.4 points and 4.6 helps while shooting 22.6% from 3-point variety. He had begun to regain his kind once the calendar turned to 2024, going for 13 points and 7 helps in a win over California and 26 points and three 3-pointers in a win over Stanford on Jan. 6.

Through 16 games, Collier is balancing 15.4 points and 4.1 helps and is presently ranked No. 8 in ESPN’s NBA draft rankings.With Collier sidelined, more minutes must be readily available for freshman guard Bronny James. James has actually been the first guard off the bench for the Trojans, and although James has had problem with his shot the previous 2 games, he’s shown flashes of his two-way capability in Pac-12 play. James had 15 points and 3 assists in a loss to Oregon State on Dec. 30 and followed that up with 10 points and 3 assists in the win over California.”Bronny [is] an extremely clever basketball player,”coach Andy Enfield said after the Stanford win. “And he plays difficult every ownership and defensively he assists us. He gets deflections, he can safeguard the ball on smaller guys and he’s strong enough to protect larger guys. So far, so excellent.”USC heads to Colorado (11-5)on Saturday.