Just when many people thought Ben Simmons was back, an injury hampers his 2023-2024 season return.
The Brooklyn Nets guard leads his team in rebounds and assists, a throwback to the two-way machine he was from 2018 to 2021. However, the momentum was watered down after he was set to miss a significant number of games again.
Simmons will have an epidural injection in his back, which means he will be out for two more weeks. He already missed two weeks as part of the rehabilitation of a nerve issue in his lower back.
Nets coach Jack Vaughn tried to quash fears of a longer layoff for Simmons, saying it was all part of the plan for his recovery.
"The epidural happened within the course of this week here," he said after their win over the Orlando Magic.
"It was just a part of his getting back to playing, and that is a part of his treatment, a part of his strengthening that was just a part of his getting back to a position of joining us. No setbacks."
Ben Simmon's injury explained
The nerve impingement is a familiar setback for Simmons, as he has been dealing with it since 2020.
Nerve impingement, colloquially known as pinched never, happens when surrounding tissues such as bone, tendon, cartilage, or muscles apply high pressure on the nerve.
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The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke under the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) said that a person gets pinched never because of injuries or genetic factors. A common symptom is a sciatic pain that occurs through severe leg cramp, a sharp electrical or "knife-like" pain. It worsens when one makes a sudden move, including sneezing and coughing. It is also felt when tingling or experiencing a burning sensation down the leg.
Simmons is suffering from a lower back pinched nerve. According to the NIH, the possible causes of pinched nerves in the lower back are:
- Injury or inflammation, which may put pressure on the nerves.
- Spinal stenosis, a narrowing of the spinal column.
- Spondylolisthesis, when a vertebra slips out of place.
- A herniated disk, when the disks between vertebrae become compressed and bulge out.
- An infection in the spinal disks, joints, or bones
- Osteoporosis, which can cause painful fractures
Pinched nerve history in professional sports
Nerve impingement is a common injury in Major League Baseball and in the National Football League.
Antonio Romo of the Dallas Cowboys was the most high-profile athlete to suffer from it. The four-time Pro Bowl suffered a season-ending herniated disk injury on his lower back in 2013, and it was attributed to the hit he took in Week 16 game against the Washington Redskins (now Commanders).
He underwent a successful surgery that removed part of a herniated disc to release pressure from the nerve root. Romo returned to the game and recorded a successful 2014 season before retiring in 2016.
In the NBA, Tyson Chandler went through what Simmons is going through. The 2011 NBA Champion was out for almost a month in early 2013 for the New York Knicks due to a pinched nerve.
He underwent the supervision of Dr. Wellington Hsu, a spine specialist at Northwestern University.
Chandler was still able to finish the 2013 season. Unlike Romo, he stayed in the league for almost another decade.
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