Gordon Hayward Injury: Updates on Jazz Star's Back and Return
Gordon Hayward is battling a lower-back strain that caused him to miss the team's game against the New York Knicks on March 10. However, he returned on March 12 against the Houston Rockets.
Continue for updates.
Gordon Returns vs. Houston
Thursday, March 12
Gordon returned tonight against the Rockets, scoring 29 points and dishing out seven assists in 31 minutes of action in Utah's 109-91 win over Houston.
Now in his fifth season with the Jazz, Hayward has emerged as a star after being drafted out of Butler in 2010. The 24-year-old set career highs with 16.2 points, 5.2 assists and 5.1 rebounds last season and has seen his production spike again this year.
His emergence has made him a leader for the Jazz even with his limited experience in the league. Coaches around the league like Doc Rivers have started to take notice, as Dan Woike of the Orange County Register notes:
"Doc Rivers just said he has a man crush on Gordon Hayward for the last two years.
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) November 4, 2014"
The swingman dealt with a minor knee injury last season but has largely been durable thus far in his career, as he's never missed more than 10 games in any season. Thanks to his consistency, Utah rewarded him in the offseason with a four-year, $63 million contract.
Hayward spoke about earning that contract with the team, per Cleon Wall of KSL.com:
"When you sign that long term deal it kind of takes the burden off you a little bit … it sort of gives you relief. … I feel that I’m one of the elite players in the NBA.
It is fun being leader of the team. It’s interesting how quickly it happened.
"
Hayward is one of the Jazz's biggest offensive weapons. Along with his presence on the court, losing his leadership might be even more critical.
In a deep Western Conference where a playoff spot is anything but a given, not having Hayward would cause the Jazz to fall further behind.
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