Gordon Hayward Undergoes Surgery on Leg Injury, Should Be Ready for Camp

After suffering a dislocated ankle and a fractured tibia in his Boston Celtics debut, Gordon Hayward underwent another procedure Wednesday to remove the plate and screws from his previous surgery, the team announced.   

Hayward is "scheduled to return to basketball activities in six to eight weeks, and is expected to be at full strength for the start of training camp," according to the team.

Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports reported Monday that Hayward was progressing in his rehab and was even playing one-on-one. At that time, though, there was still no timetable for him to be back to 100 percent.

Hayward signed a max contract with the Celtics last offseason, and after the team acquired Kyrie Irving in an August trade, Boston entered the 2017-18 season with championship aspirations. However, Hayward went down with a gruesome injury only five minutes into the season opener.

He would not play again for the rest of the season.

Boston went on to reach the 2018 Eastern Conference Finals without Hayward and Irving (knee), even holding series leads of 2-0 and 3-2 over LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. In the end, however, the Celtics didn't have enough firepower to keep James from his eighth consecutive NBA Finals.

There was speculation during the season that Hayward might be able to return in time for the playoffs, especially after a video by the Players' Tribune showed his progress:

However, Celtics head coach Brad Stevens repeatedly made it clear that he would not rush the All-Star forward back.

If Hayward and Irving are healthy entering the 2018-19 season, Boston will be among the favorites to win the East next season.