Category Archives: Basketball

Achilles Rupture, Achilles/Patellar/Quadricep, All Blogs, Ankle/Foot, Basketball, Tendon Rupture

J.J. Barea Torn Achilles Tendon

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On January 11, 2019, the Dallas Maverick’s point guard and sixth man J.J. Barea tore his right achilles tendon. The injury occurred in the fourth quarter of a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves on a play where Barea drove to the basket and made a contested shot with little physical contact. Barea stayed on the court after the play holding his leg until play was finally stopped.

Reports indicate that Barea underwent surgery to repair the achilles a few days later. The injury  should sideline him from play for the entire 2019 season and may threaten the start of next season per reports.

For more detailed medical information about torn achilles injuries click here. 

Achilles/Patellar/Quadricep, All Blogs, Basketball, Knee, Tendon Rupture

Victor Oladipo Knee Injury

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On Wednesday, January 23rd, the Indiana Pacers’ starting shooting guard Victor Oladipo injured his right knee late in the second quarter of a game vs the Toronto Raptors.  The injury occurred when Oladipo planted his right foot while running after the Raptors’ Pascal Siakam on a fast break.  Oladipo had to be carted off.

He had ruptured his quadriceps tendon.  The quadriceps is the large muscle in the front of the thigh.  It straightens the knee.  The quadriceps tendon attaches the muscle to the knee cap (patella).  The patellar tendon attaches the patella to the lower leg (tibia).

Quadriceps rupture is fairly obvious on examination.  The ubiquitous “athlete MRI” that seems to be obtained routinely and largely unhelpfully can be useful in this circumstance to plan surgery.  A completely ruptured quad tendon prevents an individual from straightening the knee.  Without surgery, it would be difficult to walk let alone play basketball. This injury is ready to take force after about 6 months, but it will take a while to strengthen the muscle and get back into game shape.  Oladipo may be ready to play by the beginning of next season.  Former San Antonio Spurs starting point guard Tony Parker also ruptured his quadriceps tendon in early May 2017 during the NBA Playoffs.  He received surgery two days after the injury and returned to play six-and-a-half months later.

It is worth noting that Oladipo has missed nearly a dozen games this season due to an undisclosed right knee problem.  A normal quadriceps tendon is unlikely to rupture, so that problem may have been quadriceps tendinopathy.  Quadriceps tendon ruptures generally occur in people over age 40, with most cases occurring in people in the 50-60 age range.  Quadriceps rupture is very rare among NBA players, and 26-year-old Oladipo is relatively young for this injury.  Charles Barkley and Tony Parker both sustained the injury later in their careers at age 36 and 34, respectively.

All Blogs, Ankle/Foot, Basketball

John Wall Heel Injury

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On the first week of the new year, Washington Wizard’s point guard John Wall underwent surgery to fix a lingering heel injury. The diagnosis of the injury was reported as a Haglund deformity, which is associated with persistent Achilles tendinopathy. Many of the media reports refer to this as an injury, but that is not accurate.    

The Haglund deformity is just a prominent part of the bone where the Achilles tendon meets the heel bone.  Many people have a bony prominence there and no symptoms, so there is debate about the role of the bone and the value of excising it.  Degeneration of the Achilles tendon (tendinopathy) usually happens at a little older age. Most tendinitis and tendinopathy can be managed nonoperatively.

Wizards head coach Scott Brooks recently explained that Wall has dealt with this problem for years. Sources indicate the surgery should sideline him for six to eight months.