Oklahoma City Thunder rookie Chet Holmgren will miss the entire 2022-23 season because of a Lisfranc injury suffered Wednesday during a Pro-Am event.
Holgrem, the No. 2 pick in this year’s NBA drafted, suffered the injury as he backpedaled while defending Lebron James on a fast break.
“Certainly, we are disappointed for Chet, especially given the excitement he had about getting on the floor with his teammates this season,” Thunder general manager Sam Presti said in a statement. “We know Chet has a long career ahead of him within our organization and the Oklahoma City community. One of the things that most impressed us during the process of selecting Chet was his determination and focus. We expect that same tenacity will carry him through this period of time as we work together and support him during his rehabilitation.”
Injuries Were Always A Concern
Holmgren was oftentimes jokingly called a unicorn while in college, boasting a 7-foot-1, 195-pound frame and exceptional ball handling skills for a big man. But that same unique build left many teams wondering if Holmgren’s body would be able to withstand the physical nature of the NBA. Many promising 7-footers like Yao Ming and Greg Oden have previously seen their careers cut short by injuries, and while Homgren possesses an even higher upside than those players, injury could send his career down a similar path.
Holmgren is set to undergo surgery in the near future to address the ruptured Lisfranc. Presti has already stated that the team will be “extremely conservative” with his recovery.
Dr. Silverman weighed in on Holmgren’s injury after seeing the injury Wednesday night.
“Lisfranc injuries can be seriously troublesome. He will need to undergo an MRI to evaluate which ligament structures are damaged, and then the standard of care is open reduction and internal fixation of the joints that are injured. It is a central that the surgery be performed and the joints be reduced as close as perfect as possible, “said Dr. Silverman, noting that “there is a direct correlation between anatomic reduction of the joint dislocation and long-term arthritis.”
“Given the stresses that he will push through this foot, every action to ensure this reduction and stabilization is essential to decrease his risk of arthritis and prevent this from being a career ending injury. Given that his career has just started, it would be a shame if it ended early. Unfortunately, some of these injuries end up with chronic midfoot arthritis, and that would cause a number of problems for a budding 7-foot sensation,” added Silverman.
He’ll have the best doctors and rehab team at his disposal, and considering the team has mentioned that they plan to be very cautious going forward, we believe he’ll make a strong recovery. That said, we won’t see him in any meaningful action until the 2023-24 season. We wish him the best in his surgery and recovery.