NBA Injuries
Update: Marcus Smart (thumb) gets second opinion-Dr. Friedman
Reports came out today that said Marcus Smart actually has a thumb ligament injury and is seeking second opinions. Athletes commonly seek second opinions when they don’t like the first opinion. The possibilities are a RCL injury (best case scenario) or a UCL injury. Marcus Smart likely has a thumb UCL injury. UCL injuries are almost 10x more common than RCL thumb injuries. If it is a UCL injury, hopefully it’s just a grade 1 or 2 injury that can be immobilized and he can potentially return to play in the playoffs. If it is a Grade 3 injury he would need surgery which would end his season. Smart could always play through this injury and delay surgery, but it is the thumb on his shooting hand so his effectiveness would be a big issue. For a righty, the right thumb is very important for shooting. Some athletes try playing with a brace but this would surely effect his play.
Luckily for smart he is not known for his shooting and his defense will only be minimally effected by this injury. The Celtics will need everyone at their best if they expect to be able to make it out of the eastern conference this year, but unfortunately I doubt Marcus smart will be at 100% if he plays at all.
NBA Injury Alert
Reports are stating that Damian Lillard suffered a groin strain Wednesday night vs the Grizzlies. He will not participate in the All Star game and maybe miss a couple games following the all stargame depending on the severity. We expect CJ McCollum to handle most of the scoring until Lillard gets back. In this article we will go over what exactly is a groin strain and the severity of it.
What is injured in a groin strain?
The groin muscles or the hip adductors are responsible for adducting/bringing the legs together. The groin muscles can be separated into two groups. The first group is the pectineus, adductor longus, and adductor brevis muscles which attach from the pelvis to the femur. The gracilis and adductor magnus attach from the pelvis to the knee. Any injury to these muscles are referred to as a groin strain.
How is it injured?
Groin Strain occur in sports that involve quick acceleration and sudden changes in direction as well as powerful overstretching of the leg and thigh in abduction and external rotation.
A groin strain is a stretching or tearing of the muscle group as a result of overloading the muscles beyond their normal range.
Am I at risk for injury?
Previous groin injury and adductor weakness have been linked to the incidence of adductor muscle strains. Core weakness or delayed onset of transverse abdominus recruitment increases risk of groin injury.
Are all groin sprains the same?
All groin injuries are different and are classified by their severity. They all either are defined as pain during palpation of the adductor tendons or the insertion on the pubic bone or groin pain during adduction against resistance
Grade 1: there is pain but minimal loss of strength and minimal restriction of motion
Grade 2: Tissue damage that compromises the strength of the muscle but not including complete loss of strength and function
Grade 3: Complete disruption of the muscle tendon unity including complete loss of function of the muscle.
How long am I out for?
1st degree: 2-4 weeks
2nd degree: 4-6 weeks
3rd degree: 6-10 weeks
Source
Nicholas, Stephen and Tyler, Timothy. Adductor Muscle Strains in sport. 2002.
