The season is over for Washington Wizards forward Cam Whitmore, as he recovers from a frightening injury setback.

“Washington Wizards guard/forward Cam Whitmore has started the recovery process for a diagnosed venous condition and will miss the remainder of the 2025-26 season,” Wizards PR posted on X. “The team will provide additional updates as appropriate.”

Whitmore suffered a blood clot due to upper-extremity deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder. The 21-year-old star had been out since December 5, when he was listed as available against the Boston Celtics, but didn’t play. 

Doctors diagnosed a blood clot in Whitmore’s right shoulder after he complained early about muscle soreness.

While Whitmore’s absence will certainly hurt the Wizards, they were not expecting an improved season. Ranked 14th in the Eastern Conference with a 10-29 record, it already looked like tanking was their best option to move up in the draft. Moreover, prioritizing his health is the Wizards’ top priority now. 

According to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, the Wizards have applied for a disabled player exception, which they are now eligible for. If approved, it would allow them to sign a player as Whitmore’s replacement, but they would pay half of his $3.5 million salary. They can also choose to pay the replacement the amount on a non-taxpayer’s mid-level exception, which is a lesser amount.

Whitmore had joined the Wizards from the Houston Rockets in the offseason. The Wizards traded their two second-round picks in a three-team trade involving the New Orleans Pelicans as well. An athletic forward, Whitmore was the first-round pick in the 2023 NBA draft and was decent in Houston.

In 21 games this season with the Wizards, he averaged 9.2 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 0.7 steals in nearly 17 minutes. He shot 45.6% from the field, including a worrying 28.6% from deep.

However, with Whitmore’s recent setback, a bigger durability conversation is surfacing.

Cam Whitmore’s DVT showcases a worrying trend in the NBA

There has been an increase in the frequency of such injuries among NBA players over the last year. In February, Victor Wembanyama had to end his campaign after the All-Star game after a blood clot (deep vein thrombosis) was found in his right shoulder. A month later, Damian Lillard also missed weeks after being diagnosed with the same issue in his right calf. He was cleared in April. 

Doctors also diagnosed Detroit Pistons rising star Ausar Thompson with DVT in March 2024. After playing 63 games in his rookie year, he was shut down for the rest of the season. He made a full recovery in November of the following season. Memphis Grizzlies center Christian Koloko also experienced a blood clot in his rookie season with the Toronto Raptors in 2023.

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According to Mayo Clinic, “Deep vein thrombosis can be serious because blood clots in the veins can break loose. The clots can then travel through the bloodstream and get stuck in the lungs, blocking blood flow (pulmonary embolism). When DVT and pulmonary embolism occur together, it’s called venous thromboembolism (VTE).”

“PE is a potentially life-threatening complication associated with DVT,” the official website stated.

LeBron James’ former championship teammate and Miami Heat legend, Chris Bosh, had a remarkable career that ended prematurely because clots were not detected early. In 2015, he was ruled out for the remainder of the season after developing blood clots in one of his lungs.

A year later, doctors discovered another blood clot in his leg. It turned into a career-ending illness. Despite multiple attempts to make a comeback, Bosh had to retire in 2019.

“The recovery is unpredictable, and it’s all based on how long it takes for the blood clot to dissolve,” Dr. Cheng-Han Chen, medical director of the Structural Heart Program at Saddleback Medical Center, told The Athletic. “Depending on the person, the time it takes for the blood clot to resolve could be anywhere from three months to a year. I understand why teams would be like, ‘We can’t give a timeline.’ Because if I were the doctor, I would tell the teams, ‘I can’t give you a timeline.’”

While there is clear evidence that the league has been able to detect blood clots at an early stage, the frequency of detection has increased in recent years. Is it concerning? Yes. It should be a trend that the NBA needs to look into more deeply.