BOSTON — Professional athletes usually have a pretty high tolerance for pain. But even Avery Bradley wasn’t prepared for the discomfort that accompanied his latest injury.
“Everyone told me it’d be painful, but nobody told me it’d be this painful, as it really is,” the Boston Celtics guard said before Wednesday’s game against the Detroit Pistons at TD Garden.
The injury in question is a left hip pointer, which Bradley suffered Saturday in Boston’s loss to the Brooklyn Nets. Bradley tried to stay in the game but left in the first half and missed Monday’s rematch against the Nets in Brooklyn.
“It was actually in a weird spot, because it was in a spot that hurts even more because of the amount of muscles that you use on a daily basis,” Bradley said of the injury. “It just swelled up instantly, and at the time I did it, I thought was fine until I went back into the game, and (head coach Brad Stevens) had to sub me out.”
Bradley also will miss Wednesday’s game against the Pistons and is expected to sit out Thursday’s contest in Chicago against the Bulls. But Stevens said Wednesday he hopes his starting shooting guard can return against the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday.
“I feel a lot better,” Bradley said. “It still hurts me a little bit to move, to even cough. The worst is sneezing. It was painful, but the trainers have been doing a great job. We’ve been doing two-a-days, so I feel a lot better. It’s not swollen anymore, so I’m just excited to get back on the court. I’m kind of bored.”
Apparently Bradley has had plenty of pain to occupy his thoughts, though.
“When I sneeze, cough, even laugh, believe it or not. Everything hurts,” he added. “But I can sit down now, I can lay down. The first few nights, I couldn’t even do those things.”
Thumbnail photo via Tim Fuller/USA TODAY Sports Images
