Nuggets forward Kenyon Martin will miss the rest of the season because of a bad right knee.
Martin had arthroscopic surgery Wednesday, and the team said the operation ``revealed more significant damage'' than originally thought.
Martin has five years and more than US$66 million left on his contract. He played in two games this season, averaging 9.5 points and 10 rebounds.
The Nuggets played at Orlando on Wednesday night.
``I just found out,'' Nuggets player personnel director Mark Warkentien told The Associated Press from Belgrade, Serbia, where he was wrapping up a scouting trip. ``I'm still taken aback a little bit and I'll talk to my guys in the morning and assess where we're at.''
Martin was limited to a career-low 56 games last season after surgery on his left knee. He was suspended in the playoffs for his tirade at the coaching staff after his playing time was held down against the Los Angeles Clippers.
He and coach George Karl patched up their relationship, and after training camp Martin declared himself healthy for the first time since undergoing microfracture surgery on his left knee 18 months ago.
He was taped up and ready to play against the New York Knicks on Nov. 8 when a team doctor went into the locker room minutes before tip-off and sent him for tests on his swollen right knee.
``Right now I'm at a loss for words, you know what I'm saying? I worked my butt off in training camp. For this to happen now, I'm down in the dumps,'' Martin told The Associated Press that night after an MRI revealed another surgery was necessary.
Martin said he had no idea how or when he hurt his right knee but was hoping to miss only one or two months, not the whole year.
The Nuggets bolstered their front court in the off-season with the addition of Joe Smith and Reggie Evans, to go along with the return of Nene.
Eduardo Najera said last week that the Nuggets would miss Martin's powerful presence.
``It's very difficult to lose him. He's been a leader and he sets the tone with his aggressive play and personality,'' Najera said. ``It will take some time for us to adjust. ... We all have a chance to get more minutes. Joe hasn't played that many minutes, and Evans hasn't either. I think that Martin is irreplaceable, but combined, all our big guys can do a pretty good job.''
© The Canadian Press, 2007
