Hornets’ Gordon Hayward’s latest injury ‘definitely frustrating.’ Where do things stand?
Seventy-five minutes were on the Scotiabank Arena scoreboard, and Gordon Hayward was tucked behind the 3-point line, in the corner of the court.
Under the watchful eye of Adam Linens, the Charlotte Hornets’ strength and conditioning coach, Hayward bounced a massive black-and-white medicine ball, alternating hands. More stretching activities ensued, and then a marathon shooting session, lasting more than 30 minutes, before Hayward sauntered off the court after slapping hands with veteran Toronto forward Thaddeus Young, disappearing into the tunnel.
Hayward is slowly working back from left hamstring soreness that cropped up in the third quarter of the Hornets’ 121-115 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Jan 2. It’s the latest in a long line of injuries that have forced him to recondition his nearly 33-year-old body in preparation for a return to action.
“Yeah, it’s feeling better and better and better,” Hayward told The Observer. “They are tricky, so we are trying to do whatever we can to get it right, but it’s definitely getting better and better.”
Just not quite to the place yet where Hayward is able to give it a go. He sat out his fifth straight game Thursday night with the Hornets concluding a four-game road trip against Toronto at Scotiabank Arena. It’s unclear when he’ll make his return, but coach Steve Clifford suggested it could happen sometime within the next week.
“He wants to be out there so badly, but we’ve just got to make sure that he’s healthy when he comes back,” coach Steve Clifford said. “A hamstring is a tricky one. The one thing we don’t want is he comes back a little bit early and it’s a month or it’s five weeks. And we can’t afford that.
“I think literally you miss him in every aspect of team play because he’s just such a good basketball player. He’s a decision-maker at both ends of the floor and he helps in every aspect. He’s a shot-maker, his defense is good. He does everything.”
Hayward hasn’t suited up this season as much as the Hornets had hoped after two injury-ravaged years with the franchise. His injury history was already lengthy and well-documented before he arrived in Charlotte in 2019, and his fortunes haven’t changed much in his two-plus seasons since signing a four-year, $120 million contract.
Hayward has been available for only 114 of 197 games during his time with the Hornets — adding to that total with the 22 he has sat out this season — and it doesn’t include the two play-in tournament games he missed. That’s not great, considering he’s the team’s highest-paid player and relied upon heavily in a variety of areas.
An assortment of major bumps and bruises have affected nearly every part of his body at some point. Nose. Hand. Finger. Calf. Knee. Hip. Back. This season alone, he’s dealt with a banged-up knee suffered in training camp practice and a scapula fracture before his hamstring began giving him trouble.
As soon as he gets going, something else crops up.
“It is definitely frustrating,” Hayward said. “It’s been hard to get a rhythm all year, but that’s kind of how it works sometimes. So, I’m just trying to do my best to stay positive and trying to get right.”
Keeping a rosy frame of mind isn’t easy, though. The continuous grind Hayward has to undergo just to rejoin his teammates can take its toll, considering it’s happened so frequently over his career.
Encouragement from those around him is appreciated. And necessary.
“Yeah, it’s support from family, support from teammates, coaches,” Hayward said, “just trying to keep my head down and focus on the work, and focus on the rehab, and focus on trying to get better.”
One beneficial aspect of Hayward’s latest absence: Jalen McDaniels has collected more experience going up against some solid players at small forward since he’s been inserted into the starting unit. McDaniels is averaging 13 points and 7.2 rebounds over the past five games, his best stretch in such a span, and has topped double figures in scoring in his past eight games — the longest streak in his three-plus seasons.
“Yeah, I’ve thought we’ve done a good job so far as next man up,” Hayward said. “Jalen’s done a great job when he’s been in there, running the court in transition, knocking down threes. Defensively, I think he’s really good for our team. So, he’s been a guy that I think has done well.”
But Hayward is a huge part of the team, and the Hornets need his services to better balance a roster that has been besieged with injuries and racked up 123 games missed heading into their matchup against Boston at Spectrum Center on Saturday night.
Making any semblance of a respectful finish over the next three months is directly tied to the Hornets’ health. How can they get it together if players are constantly shuffling in and out of the lineup?
“The rhythm question is going to be hard (to answer),” Hayward said. “We’ve got guys that are missing time and it’s just trying to go out there and do your job individually so we can do our job as a team. If we focus on that, we’ll be all right.”
This story was originally published January 12, 2023 at 3:06 PM.
