After missing all of his rookie year with a bad foot, Jazz center Curtis Borchardt hoped an injury-free 2003-04 NBA season was in the cards.
Instead, he has been dealt a bad hand.
Borchardt has a non-displaced bone fracture in his left hand and will be out at least three to four weeks, the Jazz said Thursday.
The setback means Borchardt is likely to be placed on the injured list when the regular season gets under way Oct. 29, just one more disappointment for the 7-foot first-round 2002 draft choice from Stanford.
He underwent surgery Aug. 27 of last year to replace a pin and repair a new stress fracture in the navicular bone of his previously broken right foot.
This time, Borchardt broke his hand after banging it on a teammate's knee during practice Monday.
Initial X-rays were negative, but a subsequent bone scan and MRI exam revealed the fracture. The injury is centered below Borchardt's left index finger, near the knuckle, Jazz trainer Gary Briggs said.
Borchardt's absence leaves Utah with four big men who have guaranteed contracts: starting center Greg Ostertag and power forwards Jarron Collins, Keon Clark and Michael Ruffin. Collins is a former starting center, and Clark and Ruffin also can help back up Ostertag if need be.