“I just want to get healthy again, man,” Brooklyn Nets guard Deron Williams said before the 2014 All-Star break, according to ESPN. “If I get healthy, I know what can happen. It’s been a frustrating two years for me injury-wise. It’s something I can’t really control. Hopefully I can figure it out this summer and then go from there.”
He’s not wrong. Here’s a list of notable Deron Williams injuries since Williams joined the team in February 2011.
- On March 18, 2011, Williams injured his right wrist in a 110-95 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. He was placed on the injured list with a strained tendon in his right wrist two days later amid whispers the Nets were shutting him down for the season. He returned to the active lineup on March 31st.
- On April 6th, 2011, he was placed again on the injured list, with the official report a “sore right wrist” that would keep him out for the season. On April 11th, 2011, Williams underwent surgery on that wrist to remove bone fragments and scar tissue.
- Williams wouldn’t miss any more games until January 4th, 2012, sitting out with sore ribs. Also my favorite Fred Kerber tweet ever.
- From March 10th through 16th, 2012, Williams missed four games with a right calf injury.
- Williams returned for a month before missing five more games from April 16th to April 26th, ending his 2011-2012 year.
- On October 27th, 2012, Williams said he might need offseason surgery on his left ankle after receiving a cortisone shot to lessen inflammation in the ankle. He sat out two practices.
- On November 1st, 2012, Nets general manager Billy King downplayed bone spurs in Williams’s ankle, saying they’d get cleaned out after the season. Williams never had the surgery.
- Williams sat out December 26th, 2012 with a sore right wrist. Nets coach Avery Johnson was fired the next day.
- On February 11th, 2013, Williams officially went on the injured list with an ankle injury, undergoing platelet-rich plasma therapy treatment and cortisone shots on both ankles heading into the All-Star Break. He also reportedly did a detoxifying juice cleanse. He returned to the active roster on February 19th.
- On February 17th, 2013, Jerry Colangelo said that Deron Williams was “unfit” during the Olympics that summer.
- On February 23rd, 2013, it was reported that Williams had received at least eight injections on his ankles in the last four months.
- On March 17th, 2013, finally healthy, Williams admits that his ankles “felt like s—.”
- On April 15th, 2013, Williams was placed on the injured list with a left knee injury. He was re-activated two days later in time for the playoffs.
- On September 18th, 2013, the Nets announced that Williams had sprained his right ankle while working out at his home in Utah within the month. He was fitted for a walking boot and was expected to make a full recovery in time for training camp, but did not return to contact in practice until October 22nd, and did not play until the team’s last preseason game on October 25th.
- Three weeks later, Williams missed 11 games between November 16th and December 7th with a sprained left ankle. He originally injured the ankle on November 15th, returning to the Nets on November 20th and re-spraining the ankle on a bad fall. He was officially listed as day-to-day each day.
- Williams missed three games between January 6th and 10th, 2014, telling team doctors he felt pain in the ankle. Following an MRI, the team officially diagnosed him with a sprained left ankle.
- The team officially put Williams on the IL on January 11th to undergo platelet-rich plasma therapy treatment and cortisone shots. He missed the team’s week-long trip to London and was re-activated on January 20th. He came off the bench for six games before returning to the starting lineup.
- Williams rested the final few days of the 2013-14 season with what was deemed “right patella tendinitis.” With the Nets resting starters heading to the playoffs, it was not considered a serious injury.
- During the team’s exit interviews on May 15th, Williams said he would undergo an MRI on both ankles on Friday, May 16th, to determine if he required surgery. He met with the team’s foot & ankle specialist Martin O’Malley the following Monday for further evaluation.
- On May 22nd, the team announced that Williams will have surgery on both ankles. The surgery was performed on May 27th, and removed bone spurs from the front and back of his left ankle, cleaned out his left ankle joint, as well as a loose bone fragment from his right ankle. The surgery put him in two walking boots, with an expected recovery time of three to six weeks.
- On December 19th, Williams left a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers with a right calf injury. An MRI diagnosed the injury as a low-grade calf strain, and would sideline him for two games. Williams returned to the lineup by coming off the bench for six straight games.
- On January 4th, 2015, Williams suffered two separate injuries to his left side, calling the first a “tweak” and the second a “cramp.” Williams sat out the team’s game the next day.
- On January 7th, Williams, who was listed as “doubtful” by the team before being activated, played four minutes before leaving in pain. The team officially diagnosed Williams with a fracture to the cartilage portion of his 12th left rib after an MRI, sidelining him for 11 games between January 9th and February 2nd.
- On April 27th, though it did not cause him to miss any games, teammate Joe Johnson said Williams had dealt with some “pretty bad tendinitis” in the team’s first-round playoff loss to the Atlanta Hawks. Williams scored a season-high 35 points the next day, but only scored 36 points in the other five playoff games combined.
- On July 10, 2015, the Nets bought out Deron Williams’s contract, ending his tenure with the team.
This piece was last updated on July 10th, 2015.