Lisfranc injury: How 5 players returned after the foot diagnosis
Oklahoma City Thunder rookie Chet Holmgren has been ruled out for the entire 2022-23 season due to a Lisfranc injury in his right foot, the team announced.
Holmgren suffered the injury playing in the annual CrawsOver Pro-Am in Seattle, Washington. He was seen attempting to defend a layup attempt by LeBron James, but came up limping after the play and eventually left the game.
Thunder executive vice president Sam Presti expressed his disappointment for Holmgren but is confident he will come back better than ever. The team expects him to make a full recovery from the injury, which will require surgery.
Thunder injury update. Statement from GM Sam Presti.
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— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) August 25, 2022
Lisfranc injuries occur if bones in the middle of the foot are broken or if ligaments in the area are torn. The ligament helps keep the midfoot in place and stabilizes the arch of the foot. It is relatively uncommon in basketball with it popping up more frequently in football.
The recovery time for the injury can vary depending on various factors, but players often return by the next season. It was once viewed as a career-ending injury, especially in football, but advances in medical treatment have allowed players to successfully return.
With that in mind, Rookie Wire went back over the years and took a look at how much time some basketball players needed to recover from the injury and how they played afterward.
Udonis Haslem, Miami Heat (2010)
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Date of Injury: Nov. 20, 2010
Next game back: May 9, 2011
Haslem tore the Lisfranc ligament just 13 games into the 2010-11 season and eventually underwent surgery to repair it. He missed much of the regular season but returned to play late in the second round of the playoffs during the Heat’s run to the NBA Finals that year.
He used that offseason to return to form and played in all but two games during the lockout-shortened 2011-12 campaign. He was a regular contributor until the 2014-15 season and has stepped into a reserve role since then. He will play his 20th and final season this year.
Furkan Korkmaz, Philadelphia 76ers (2017)
Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Date of Injury: Dec. 15, 2017
Next game back: March 22, 2018
Korkmaz sustained a Lisfranc fracture playing in the NBA G League during his rookie campaign. The injury did not require surgery and Korkmaz was able to return to play later in the season with the Sixers on March 22 with no further issues.
He has developed into a key contributor for the Sixers since then.
Caleb Martin, UNLV (2018)
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With limited history on the Lisfranc injury related to basketball players, we pulled up the recovery of Caleb Martin during his junior year at UNLV in the 2017-18 season.
Martin injured his left foot versus Colorado State on Feb. 3, 2018. He was diagnosed with a Lisfranc sprain and was initially ruled out indefinitely. However, Martin managed to play through the injury and would miss minimal time that season.
The injury played a major factor in Martin returning to school for his senior year. He was contemplating entering the NBA draft but, knowing he couldn’t perform to expectations in workouts with his foot injured, he instead used that summer to recover and get back to 100%.
Martin went undrafted the following year and spent two seasons with the Charlotte Hornets before signing with the Miami Heat last year. He inked a three-year, $20 million contract last month.
Gerald Green, Houston Rockets (2019)
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Date of Injury: Oct. 14, 2019
Next game back: N/A
Green suffered a Lisfranc fracture in his left foot in the preseason ahead of the 2019-20 season. He underwent surgery shortly afterward and then missed the rest of the season. The Rockets eventually traded him to the Denver Nuggets and he was later waived.
He announced his retirement in October 2021 and joined the Rockets as a player development coach. However, he came out of retirement in January to play with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers in the NBA G League. He averaged 16.6 points and 4.7 rebounds in 21 games at the age of 36.
Jason Preston, Los Angeles Clippers (2021)
Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
Date of Injury: Preseason 2021
Next game back: N/A
Preston underwent surgery to repair what he deemed a Lisfranc injury in October 2021. He suffered the injury during a workout prior to the start of training camp and eventually missed his entire rookie season recovering from surgery.
He returned with the Clippers last month to play in the Las Vegas Summer League, averaging 7.7 points, 5.3 assists, 3.7 rebounds and one steal in three games. He is healthy again and will have the opportunity to compete for playing time in training camp.
