A little over two months after Gordon Hayward suffered a dislocated ankle and broken tibia that was tough to look at, and no doubt hurt like hell, he has gone on record as saying the worst part about it is not the physical pain, but instead having to watch his new team (the Celtics) from the bench. It's not the first time Hayward has made similar comments about his injury.
Hayward reiterated those feelings during a Wednesday appearance on The Dan Patrick Show after the show's host asked him "Which has been harder, the physical pain or the mental depression from the injury?"
Apparently that was not a difficult question to answer.
"Definitely the depression," Hayward said. "It’s been painful, but it’s nothing like sitting around watching the team you were supposed to be playing with this year. I signed to play for the Boston Celtics this year now to only sit and watch the Boston Celtics this year. That part has been difficult and much more difficult to deal with than the pain."
As you maybe know, Hayward suffered the brutal injury a mere six minutes into his first game with Boston. The 27-year-old had signed a 4-year/$128 million contract this past July to play with the team.
Despite the fact that the damage done to his leg after he landed awkwardly on it looked like it was going to keep him out for the rest of this season, Hayward left the door open for a return. Though he did not put an official timeline on it.
"I work out every day to try to increase my range of motion and increase my strength in my legs so that I can be back as fast as I can," he said in the same interview. "Whether that’s this year or this summer or next year, I will just let that happen. But for sure, as a competitor, I’m just trying to come back faster than anyone has ever done it."
In related news, the 2017 All-Star is reportedly out of his walking boot permanently, though he's still wearing a brace for "the foreseeable future." In fact, you can read a seriously extensive update (the guy does have some time on his hands, after all) that he wrote and posted onto his own website on Thursday. Check that out here.
