Hip injury to sideline CU Buffs men’s basketball freshman Quincy Allen for entire 2021-22 season
The highest-rated recruiting class in the history of Colorado men’s basketball will miss one of its key players for the duration of the 2021-22 season.
On Thursday, head coach Tad Boyle told BuffZone that 6-foot-7 rookie Quincy Allen will not play this season due to a hip injury. While Boyle declined to reveal the specific nature of Allen’s injury, the Washington DC native recently underwent surgery and is facing an extensive comeback trail before returning to the floor.
Asked how much practice time Allen might still get with the Buffs later this season, Boyle said, “Not much. He’s going to be out a while. It’s not going to be, unfortunately, your typical redshirt year where you get to practice and improve and get better. He’s going to be rehabbing and trying to get back so he’s ready to play.”
The Buffs will hold their first official preseason practice of the 2021-22 season on Tuesday with a freshman class ranked 13th in the nation, and No. 1 in the Pac-12 Conference, by 247Sports.com. Allen is one of three four-star recruits in the five-player class (also KJ Simpson and Lawson Lovering), and he was expected to compete for a rotation role at the three-spot.
Allen is listed as the No. 89 recruit in the nation in the 2021 class by 247Sports and was No. 74 in the ESPN100. Allen was named the 2021 Gatorade Washington DC Player of the Year.
CU conducted 10 summer practices ahead of the team’s four-game exhibition trip to Costa Rica, and Allen participated in the first set of five practices in late June and early July. However, when the Buffs reconvened for the final five practices ahead of the Costa Rica trip, Allen was sidelined by the hip injury and ultimately did not play during the Buffs’ four wins in Costa Rica.
Allen’s injury leaves 6-foot-7 Luke O’Brien as the only true three-man on the roster, though fellow sophomores Jabari Walker and Tristan da Silva, both 6-foot-8, can fill minutes at either forward spot.
While the Buffs’ upcoming season took a hit on Thursday, CU did solidify future reinforcements in the 2022 recruiting class by landing a verbal commitment from RJ Smith, a 6-foot-4 guard from La Verne, Calif. Smith is the second commitment for the Buffs for 2022, joining 6-foot-10 North Dakota forward Joe Hurlburt. CU still has one open slot remaining for the 2022 class.
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