Trail Blazers' Gary Payton: Out until at least mid-November

Payton (abdomen) will not take the floor until Nov. 15 against the Spurs at the earliest, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reports.

Payton underwent core muscle surgery in July and was initially expected to be ready for the start of the regular season. Unfortunately, that date has come and gone, and it appears he's set to miss at least another couple of weeks. Payton should supply Portland with some additional backcourt depth, once cleared, after averaging 7.1 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.4 steals over 17.6 minutes per game in his 71 appearances with the Warriors last season.