North Carolina guard Seth Trimble sustained an arm fracture due to malfunctioning weight room equipment, Field of 68’s Jeff Goodman reports.
Per the report, a source told Field of 68 that a weight machine fell on top of Trimble as he was working out prior to practice on Sunday.
“He was grabbing the lat bar to stretch, he squatted down, pulled it down and the machine fell on him,” the source told Field of 68. “It wasn’t bolted down at all. He was pinned underneath, and it took four guys to get it off him.”
North Carolina announced Trimble’s injury to his left forearm on Sunday and that it would require surgery. Per Tuesday’s report, Trimble is expected to miss 6-8 weeks with the injury. That timeline projects a return for Trimble sometime from late December to mid January.
The injury will sideline Trimble for key non-conference games against No. 17 Michigan State (Nov. 27) and No. 9 Kentucky (Dec. 2). The timeline projects Trimble to return for the bulk of ACC play. UNC plays the first of its 18 conference games against Florida State on Dec. 30.
Trimble, a senior captain, is the veteran leader on a roster that underwent significant turnover in the offseason. Trimble was a part-time starter for last season’s team that lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament after making the field as a play-in team.
He’s the only starter to return to a team that’s started the season with high hopes and moved up to No. 18 in the AP poll this week after a convincing win over No. 19 Kansas at home on Friday.
Trimble’s joined in the starting lineup by transfers Henri Veesaar (Arizona), Kyan Evans (Colorado State) and Jarin Stevenson (Alabama) and star freshman Caleb Wilson, who sparked UNC’s win over Kansas with a two-way effort that featured 24 points, seven rebounds, four assists and four steals.
As long as he’s out, Trimble’s absence will represent a significant hole in the UNC lineup. Trimble’s averaging 14.5 points, 5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1 steal in UNC’s two games this season and is the spark for North Carolina’s transition game.
In his absence, sharp-shooting European guard Luka Bogavac projects to see more playing time. A 22-year-old freshman, Bogavac averaged 14.9 points while shooting 45.1% from the field and 39.9% from 3 for Studentski Centar of Europe’s ABA League last season.
