T-wolves' Love won't need surgery on broken hand
Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Love broke his right hand not while jockeying for a rebound nor while reaching into a pile of bodies in a battle for a loose ball.
The real story is more embarrassing: He was hurt while doing knuckle pushups.
Love won't need surgery, coach Rick Adelman announced. The coach added that he's instituting a new policy that bans knuckle pushups.
"I think that should be taken out of the repertoire for sure," Adelman told reporters. "In fact, all push-ups ... anything to do with the hands."
In a statement released by the Timberwolves, Love said, "(Wednesday), I had a post-practice commitment and decided to work out at my home with my personal trainer before heading to Target Center. While doing various pushups, including knuckle pushups, which are part of my regular workout routine, I hurt my hand. I immediately knew something was wrong and called head athletic trainer Gregg Farnam.
"Although I'm disappointed that this injury happened, I will work extremely hard to stay in shape and return to the court as quickly as possible."
Love broke the third and fourth metacarpals on his shooting hand.
The team originally placed the timetable for Love's return at six to eight weeks, but Yahoo Sports reported Thursday that Love could be back in five to six weeks. That would sideline him for approximately eight to 11 games at the start of the regular season.
Love, 24, appeared in 55 games for Minnesota last season -- he also missed time with a broken left hand -- and averaged 26 points per game. He was a member of the United States' gold-medal-winning team at the London Olympics.
The Timberwolves are also without star point guard Ricky Rubio, who will miss at least the first six weeks of the season while he recovers from a torn ACL in his left knee.
