It’s been just about two months since Gordon Hayward mangled his ankle in his Celtics debut. Today, Hayward posted an update on his personal blog where he touched on his progress…
My workouts now are even longer than they were in the summer because I have to move a little bit slower to get everywhere. I am doing a lot more exercises like low load circuits, and balance stuff, and stretching stuff, that I probably — to be honest — should have been doing before I even got hurt. But you don’t necessarily have to do it as much when you’re healthy.
Then at the end of the workout, I go to the basketball court and do as much basketball work as I can. I’ve recently started to do some stuff standing up, so I don’t have to use the chair to shoot anymore. I can just shoot with the boot on, staying straight up. It’s non-movement stuff for now, but I can handle the basketball just standing straight up and do different drills like that.
Praised his bench (and coach for how he used them…
When you watch us play, it feels like we are really deep. I can’t name one person that would stand out over everybody because I feel like I could talk about all of them, and say how they have all made contributions during different times throughout the season.
Coach Stevens is putting guys in the right position and they are all buying into the system. That’s what he’s best at: putting guys in positions to be successful, and guys are playing their role, and doing what they can do, not trying to force it.
As well as his fellow veterans…
People don’t understand how difficult it is to make those types of finishes. [Kyrie Irving] can put spins on the ball with either hand, with his body facing whatever direction, over 7-footers, over athletic wings. It doesn’t matter. He has the great shooting ability, being able to shoot threes, and come off screens and hit jumpers and floaters too. But the finishing is something that — I know a lot of people already knew that — but for me, to be able to see it firsthand is definitely something that is incredible.
Then you’ve got Al, who does so many things that don’t even show up on the stat sheet. This year, you are seeing his ability to make plays from the post and the top of the key. He stretches the floor and makes bigs guard him out deep. Then he gives them a shot and goes around them. He can dunk it, but he can also make another play after that drive if he has to, passing back out, which I think is the rare component of his game that sets him apart.
And The Rainin’ Jays…
When you’re that young and playing a key role in the NBA, it is really easy to try to go really fast, and do too much, and maybe force some things sometimes. But they are really playing within the system, being aggressive when they need to be aggressive, while also kind of letting Kyrie and Al do their thing and lead the team. At the same time, you can see the talent. When they are called upon, they rise up. And the stuff that they can do will blow you away sometimes. They both are just really talented for being such young basketball players.
And because of the structure of the team, both of those guys are in a good situation.
And of course… how much he’s gaming.
I’ve been enjoying playing those games and hanging out with friends. I’ve said it before, but to me, that is one of the cool parts of technology and video games. I can still hang out with friends through video games. I play with some of the friends I grew up with, who went to Brownsburg, as well as people that I have met online through the gaming community. It’s a lot of fun and one of the best parts of gaming, just the camaraderie.
The video games were a big part of Lee Pelton’s feature on Hayward in the current issue of SI.
NBA players devour video games, but few master them like GTime, as he is known in cyberspace, studying strategies on YouTube and streams of professionals on Twitch.tv. Asking him to play Madden on Xbox is like inviting him to the Y for pickup. He graduated from casual gaming when his Halo team at Brownsburg High outside Indianapolis entered tournaments for cash prizes. He has earned a platinum rating in League of Legends, reserved for the top 5% of players in the world, and has convinced some fellow gamers that he could turn pro if not for the intrusions of basketball and family. For the past three years he has taken meetings about potential purchases into an eSports organization.
Since Hayward suffered a dislocated left ankle and a fractured fibula on opening night, five minutes and 11 seconds into his Celtics debut, he has been flanked by doctors, trainers, physical therapists and a sports psychologist. They are all trying to rehab his body and mind from one of the most gruesome and public injuries ever suffered on a court. But another element of his recovery unfolds alone in the darkness, where he opens the Discord app to check whether any members of his clan are online.
Of course, I recommend you go read the whole Hayward update for yourself. There’s a lot more that he discusses there and it’s nice to see he’s progressing well. I’m still holding out hope for some kind of return at some point in the playoffs.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
