What happened to Jakob Poeltl? Latest injury update for Raptors center as he exits game vs Pacers (February 26)

Jakob Poeltl of the Toronto Raptors exited the game against the Indiana Pacers on Monday night. He reportedly suffered a sprained ankle and will not return to the game. He was having a great night for the Raptors before the injury, registering 15 points, 11 rebounds and five assists.

According to Josh Lewenberg of TSN, Poeltl suffered the left ankle injury in the third quarter and was taken to the locker room for evaluation. He got his ankle re-taped, and there was hope from the broadcast team that he could return to end the game.

However, the Raptors ruled him out of the rest of the contest, as it was the same ankle he had injured in January. He missed 11 games because of that injury, so the Raptors medical team possibly didn't want him to aggravate his left ankle.

Jakob Poeltl is averaging 11.0 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.5 blocks per game this season. He first suffered a left ankle sprain on Jan. 7 against the Golden State Warriors. It happened in the third quarter, and he was ruled out indefinitely.

The Utah product eventually missed the rest of the month and returned on Feb. 2 against the Houston Rockets. He has been healthy for the entire February until the injury on Monday night. If he misses time, the Toronto Raptors will likely rely on Kelly Olynyk to pick up more minutes.

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Jakob Poeltl is in his second stint with the Toronto Raptors

Jakob Poeltl with the Toronto Raptors as a rookie.

Jakob Poeltl began his career with the Toronto Raptors, spending his first two seasons up north. They selected him ninth overall in the 2016 NBA draft ahead of stars like Domantas Sabonis, Pascal Siakam and Dejounte Murray.

All three have been All-Stars, with the Raptors drafting Siakam later at No. 27. Poeltl lasted just two years in his first stint in Toronto before he was packaged with DeMar DeRozan to acquire Kawhi Leonard in the summer of 2018. It paid off for the Raptors, as Leonard led them to their first championship in 2019.

Toronto re-acquired Poeltl last season at the trade deadline in hopes of making the playoffs. The Raptors traded Khem Birch, a first-round pick and two second-round picks for Poeltl.

However, they failed to make it out of the NBA Play-In Tournament, losing to the Chicago Bulls in the No. 9 vs. No. 10 matchup.

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