Report: Raptors' Valanciunas to miss 6 weeks with fractured hand

Toronto Raptors center Jonas Valanciunas will miss approximately six weeks after fracturing his left hand, reports Yahoo Sports' Shams Charania.

The 23-year-old big man - who opted to take the rehabilitation route instead of going under the knife - sustained the injury to his fourth metacarpal in Friday's win over the Los Angeles Lakers.

Valanciunas' extended absence represents a huge blow for the 8-6 Raptors, as they face a slew of teams featuring dynamic bigs, including the Los Angeles Clippers, Cleveland Cavaliers, Washington Wizards, and Phoenix Suns.

Filling in for the 7-foot Lithuanian will likely be a collection of front court players - defensively inclined but offensively limited Bismack Biyombo, undersized Luis Scola, even more undersized James Johnson, and recent D-League call-up Lucas Nogueira.

Based on the recovery timeline, Valanciunas could return as early as the first week of January.