Zach Edey sits Sunday’s game in Sacramento for left ankle management, and the Grizzlies expect him back Monday in Utah

Zach Edey will sit out the Memphis Grizzlies‘ game at the Sacramento Kings on Sunday, October 25, listed as out for left ankle injury management, and the Grizzlies expect him back the next night in Utah.

The Grizzlies announced the plan, and the league’s official injury report lists no new injury, only management of the ankle that has shaped his career so far. Sunday is the first leg of a back-to-back for Memphis, so the 7-foot-3 center is being held out of one game rather than the second.

An ankle Memphis is protecting

Ankle trouble limited Edey to 11 games last season, which ended with surgery, and he was eased back in with short preseason minutes this month. So far he has looked healthy. He had 6 points, 9 rebounds and 2 blocks in 21 minutes in the 123-103 opening win over Utah, and 8 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks in 22 minutes on Friday, when Memphis closed on a 17-0 run to win 111-108 at Golden State. He was a plus-25 in that game, while the Grizzlies were outscored by 22 points in the roughly 26 minutes he sat.

The cautious approach fits that history. The Grizzlies are 2-0 and have a long season to manage with him, and Sunday’s game is the start of a two-game trip through the West.

Who fills the minutes

Isaiah Stewart should start at center, Rotoworld reported, with Quinten Post as the backup. Stewart made his Grizzlies debut on Friday after recovering from a moderate left ankle sprain he suffered in the preseason, and scored 4 points in 16 minutes, picking up four fouls in the first half. Post has played about 19 minutes in each game. Cedric Coward is questionable with a left wrist sprain.

Sacramento has its own frontcourt questions. Keegan Murray is questionable with left ankle capsulitis, and Dylan Cardwell (left calf strain), Maxime Raynaud (right patella subluxation) and Ben Simmons (right Achilles tendon surgery) are out. Every listing is on our NBA injury report page.

What comes next

The Grizzlies visit the Kings on Sunday at 9 p.m. ET (4 a.m. Monday in Cairo): Grizzlies at Kings Game Center. Edey is expected to return on Monday, October 26, when Memphis visits the Jazz at 9 p.m. ET (4 a.m. Tuesday in Cairo): Grizzlies at Jazz Game Center.