Thought this was an interesting perspective from Tom Haberstroh on IT's injury and the way Boston handled it:
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/20595342/nba-cleveland-cavaliers-guard-isaiah-thomas-faces-uncertain-return-potentially-career-ending-hip-injuryIt was the first time the team had publicly acknowledged any sort of hip tear -- the team now blaming his two-game absence in March on the labral tear, not the right knee bone bruise that was the team's official diagnosis in March. While the Celtics had publicized Kelly Olynyk's and Avery Bradley's hip injuries during the playoffs, Thomas' far more serious labrum tear had not been made public until it ended his season.
It was also, in retrospect, a hint that not everything about this injury was, perhaps, as it seemed.
"In the past, sometimes they called it a groin pull and they thought it would get better just with time," Philippon told ESPN.com. "But in reality some of these groin pulls are the result of something wrong inside the joint. That's why it's coming to our attention more."
THE MARCH 15 game -- when Thomas was originally injured, according to the Celtics -- wasn't the only time Thomas suffered an injury this past season. After playing 103 consecutive regular-season games with the Celtics, Thomas was hurt in a Dec. 5 matchup against the Rockets -- an event that has become interesting in the context of his current injury status...After an awkward backpedal, Thomas immediately grabbed the top of his right leg as the play went the other way. The Celtics commentators on the telecast immediately took note of the gimpy guard.
The day after that game, in the middle of a road trip, Thomas flew back to Boston to receive treatment on what the team called a groin strain.
So was Thomas' injury in December actually when he initially tore his labrum?
"Very likely," says Guanche, who has performed more than 3,000 labral-tear repairs in his 20-year clinical career. "I wish I had a dollar for every patient that has told me, 'I've been treated for a groin strain for the last X days, weeks, months, year or whatever,' and it turns out to be a labral tear."...Given the circumstances, Guanche says he was surprised to see that Thomas had opted to forgo surgery in May.
"That would have been the time to get it fixed," Guanche says. "It was a gamble."
