HealthWatch: Gordon Hayward Faces Surgery, Rehab After Ankle Injury
BOSTON (CBS) - It didn't take a trained eye to see that Celtics player Gordon Hayward was badly injured in the season's home-opener against the Cleveland Cavaliers Tuesday night.
Celtics head coach Brad Stevens confirmed Wednesday that Hayward suffered a broken tibia and dislocated ankle.
"What doctors would have wanted last night is immediately reduce or fix the dislocation," said WBZ-TV's medical expert Dr. Mallika Marshall. "You want to try and prevent any blood vessel damage or nerve damage that could be permanent."
Hayward will undoubtedly need surgery, according to Marshall.
"Early reports are that he had a clean break, we don't know a lot of details but hopefully means it wasn't shattered and that there wasn't significant damage to surrounding tissues," Marshall continued.
A fractured ankle can take anywhere from six weeks to months to heal, depending on the severity of the injury.
"Obviously, an elite athlete like this is going to need to undergo intense rehab so that he can get back to a high level of play."
Marshall said there is even a chance he could return by the end of the season.
