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Knee surgery to sideline Memphis forward David Pellom five weeks

pellom

Memphis Athletics

Joe Murphy

While the Memphis Tigers have a high amount of talent in their front court entering the 2013-14 season, Josh Pastner’s team isn’t the most experienced in the paint. One of the options at his disposal is senior forward David Pellom, who despite playing three seasons at George Washington has yet to play a game as a Memphis Tiger.

Unfortunately for both Pellom and the Tigers he’ll have to wait a little longer to make his debut, as he’s expected to sit out five weeks after undergoing an arthroscopic procedure on his left knee. This is the second procedure Pellom’s had on the knee in 2013, with the first coming in March, and discomfort led to this most recent procedure.

“It was a simple and minor procedure, and we expect David back in no time,” Pastner said in the release.

Memphis doesn’t open its regular season until next Thursday when they host Austin Peay, but they will play an exhibition against Christian Brothers on Friday evening. Shaq Goodwin returns, and the Tigers also have talented newcomers Austin Nichols and Dominic Woodson at their disposal (freshman Nick King could also see time at the four in smaller lineups). But given how young Memphis is, Pellom is an important piece as the Tigers look to compete with Louisville and UConn atop the American Athletic Conference.

With the five-week prognosis Pellom will miss a game at Oklahoma State (November 19) and a possible Old Spice Classic semifinal matchup with LSU (should both teams win their respective openers). Will he be healthy enough to return to the floor when Memphis meets Florida in the Jimmy V Classic on December 17? That remains to be seen.

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