Injury sidelines Taipans' marquee man

A wrist injury will sideline the Cairns Taipans' million-dollar man, Jack McVeigh.

The Australian Boomer has been dealing with bone bruising since the club's Round 2 clash with Brisbane, and with the injury failing to heal, the Taipans made a decision to take a cautious approach with McVeigh.

During the club's media availability on Thursday, Cairns coach Adam Forde explained that NBL24 champion McVeigh, who spent last season with the Houston Rockets in the NBA, would miss their Round 5 clash Adelaide on Saturday night.

“We sent him for an MRI last week which cleared (McVeigh) of a break,” Forde said.

“We wanted to take a conservative approach for how we manage his wrist. (Currently) his wrist is in a splint which takes away his best aspect of shooting. We want him to rest and get his wrist right knowing it’s still early in the season. It shuffles the deck, but we want to manage his wrist and get him back on the court as soon as possible.”

He also explained that the 29-year-old, who is averaging 14.5 points, 7.2 rebounds (career-high) and 5.3 assists (career-high) during the Hungry Jack's NBL26 season, will be assessed week to week for upcoming fixtures.

The last NBL game the Paris Olympian missed in the NBL was for Tasmania, during Game 3 of their NBL23 Championship Series against Sydney.

That was the only game McVeigh missed during his three seasons with the JackJumpers.

The Taipans host Adelaide at the Cairns Convention Centre on Saturday from 7.30pm AEDT, live on ESPN.