Trail Blazers' Festus Ezeli: To undergo season-ending knee surgery

Ezeli will undergo season-ending surgery on his left knee during the upcoming week.

Analysis:

After signing a two-year, $15.1 million deal with the Trail Blazers over the summer, it was expected that Ezeli would slot in as the team's backup center and offer a rim-protecting presence, but that never came to fruition after his career-long knee troubles reared their head later on in the offseason. Ezeli received injections in his left knee in late August, and after progressing to light practices in October, he hit another snag in his rehab that ultimately left him with no other alternative than to go under the knife. With Ezeli likely in store for another long rehab process that could sideline him for the start of the 2017-18 season, it seems likely that the Trail Blazers will decline his $7.7 million team option over the summer, sending him back into free agency after having not logged a single minute over the past season.