Paul George’s injury is being called a compound fracture by some and is being compared to the severe injuries that NFL star Joe Theismann, former UFC champion Anderson Silva, NBA player Shaun Livingston, and NCAA player Kevin Ware have suffered in previous years.
George was injured during the Team USA scrimmage on Friday night. The squad of 20 players was divided and playing against each other.
George went up to try to block a shot and landed extremely awkwardly with his leg hitting the back of the bottom of the net. It’s being called a “freak injury.”
George’s right leg was injured. The injury was so gruesome that ESPN is only broadcasting it once every so often and warning viewers before it’s aired.
Head coach Mike Krzyzewski said that George was taken to the hospital and that his family is with him, but no official injury listing has been given as of yet.
ESPN Medical Analyst Dr. Michael Kaplan called George’s injury “similar” to Ware’s. “He snapped the fibula and tibula right in the middle of the leg,” Kaplan said.
“He’s certainly going to need surgery. He'll be out for nine to 12 months with this.”
Team USA players and coaches huddle after Indiana Pacers’ Paul George was injured during the USA Basketball Showcase game Friday, Aug. 1, 2014, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Indiana Pacers’ Paul George is taken off the court after he was injured during the USA Basketball Showcase game Friday, Aug. 1, 2014, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Marc Stein, a longtime basketball reporter for ESPN, said in an interview broadcast on the channel that it was the worst injury he’s ever seen.
Stein said that Team USA players are crying over what happened.
Forums are blowing up with comparisons to similar injuries, including the ones to Theismann, Silva, Livingston, and Ware.
Silva and Livingston, for example, both took a lot of time to recovery from the serious injuries. Livingston has come back after years of rehab and hard work. Silva is currently in training to recover from his broken leg that was suffered last winter.
George was slated to be a starter or at least part of the core rotation of Team USA. Krzyzewski said that questions about the final roster, which is still being finalized, would not be answered for the time being. “Everything’s on hold right and it should be,” Krzyzewski told reporters at a later press conference. “It would be so inappropriate for us to talk about anything else when there’s a serious injury like this.”
The scrimmage was in the fourth quarter when the injury happened, and wasn’t continued after George was wheeled off the court.
“There’s no way the game could have gone on under the circumstances,” USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo told reporters.
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