Doctor explains Waters’ injury, possible Warriors return timeline

Injuries continue to pile up on the Warriors this season.

Lindy Waters III sustained a hyperextended left knee in Golden State’s 123-118 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday, and his status remains unknown.

Stanford Medicine orthopedic surgeon Seth L. Sherman, M.D., spoke to NBC Sports Bay Area to break down the injury.

“Hyperextension is when the foot and ankle come way forward in relation to the knee,” Dr. Sherman explained. “What we saw was he was jumping, he landed and it looked like while there was some contact up above, it didn’t seem like there was major contact below low from the side or the front. It was more of that non-contact landing and the knee kind of buckling the way I just described.”

The injury occurred late in the second quarter when Waters landed awkwardly while contesting a dunk attempted by Grizzlies forward Santi Aldama.

Waters was down for some time before limping to the locker room and later being ruled out for the remainder of the contest.

“The things they’ll be looking for as I’m sure they did is a very good physical examination,” Dr. Sherman continued. “First you want to see, was he able to bear weight and I believe he was. That’s a good thing. Then they’ll look at does the knee joint actually swell or not? If it gets swollen, then that might implicate some sort of an injury inside of the knee whereas if it’s not very swollen immediately or the next day, that’s a better sign.

“Ideally, they could get a good ligament exam right away. Some hyperextension injuries can be way less severe. Some, unfortunately, can indicate a ligament or other injury. We also think of bone bruising or contusions. You can see if the knee goes that way, the front of one bone can hit the front of the other bone. So sometimes we hear of the bone bruise without ligament injury, that could be a time loss thing because it has to heal, but it doesn’t mean that that means big intervention.”

Dr. Sherman further explained that possible treatments for Waters could include the utilization of crutches if he’s still limping and/or a knee sleeve, in addition to medications and icing the knee.

The Athletic’s Anthony Slater reported Sunday morning that Waters avoided any “serious” issue with the hyperextension and will be listed as questionable for Golden State’s road game against the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday night.

Lindy Waters III has avoided any serious issue after a scary fall on his left knee the other night, I’m told. Hyperextension. He is questionable for tomorrow at Clippers.

— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) November 17, 2024
Nothing official has been released from the team as of Sunday morning, but Dr. Sherman revealed a possible recovery timeline depending on the severity of the injury — and shared a glimmer of hope for Dub Nation.

“If it’s a minor injury without swelling, that could be something in the order of days,” he said. “If this is a bone bruise, this could be days to weeks. And of course, if it’s something more significant, like a ligament or cartilage injury, meniscus, then you’re talking about unfortunately a pathway that’s a longer term.

“Jury’s not out yet. But we’re all pulling for him. I think some of the early predictors of him being able to put weight on it, and being safe, not returning that same day, all very reasonable and to some extent, hopefully optimistic.”