The ongoing right heel pain that caused Toronto Raptors forward Brandon Ingram to exit a pivotal Game 5 early and sit out Games 6 and 7 of a first-round playoff series against the Cleveland Cavaliers wound up requiring surgery.
Ingram had an operation to remove a heel spur, the Raptors announced Friday. The two-time All-Star is expected to be ready for training camp in September, per the team’s release.
When Ingram left the court in Game 5 against the Cavs, the series was tied 2-2. Cleveland won that game and eventually closed things out in Game 7 to advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Ingram averaged 21.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 3.7 assists this season, his first action with the Raptors after they acquired him in at the deadline in a trade with the New Orleans Pelicans during the 2024-25 campaign. The 2016 No. 2 overall pick got the nod for this year’s All-Star Game as a replacement, taking the spot of an injured Stephen Curry.
Injuries have been an issue throughout Ingram’s NBA career, which he began with the Los Angeles Lakers after starring at Duke for one season. He played just 18 games in 2024-25, as he was sidelined by a left ankle sprain from early December on.
In his end-of-season news conference on Monday, the 28-year-old Ingram reflected on how he was happy that he was significantly more healthy in the regular season this time around. His 77 appearances were the most he’s recorded since his rookie season.
Ingram conceded, though: “It sucked not being in the playoffs and helping my team, especially Game 6, Game 7.”
His heel injury popped up before the postseason. He explained to reporters on Monday that the problem flared up in March.
“I really didn't have no time to rest it,” Ingram said. “We were trying to make it to the playoffs. Coming off last season, playing 18 games, I really prided myself on trying to be out there every single night. And it got to a point where it got to a discomfort where I couldn't push off of it, or I couldn't do the things on the floor that I needed to do to be effective.”
Across late March and early April, Ingram missed three outings. That said, he was in the lineup for the Raptors’ final six regular-season contests, as well as their first five playoff games.
“Going out in [Game 5], I went to the back and I was trying to do some things to come back,” he said Monday. “I wanted to come back, and the medical staff kind of ruled me out because they were trying to save me from myself a little bit.
“So that was frustrating. I definitely wanted to be out there with my team, but that kind of buildup since March kind of held me out.”
Not only was Toronto without Ingram — the team’s leading scorer this season — but it was also dealing with the absence of starting point guard Immanuel Quickley.
Quickley suffered a strained right hamstring in Toronto's regular-season finale and reinjured that hamstring during his rehabilitation process. As a result, he remained out for the entire first-round series.
“I think it definitely would have been different if we were out there,” Ingram said Monday.
