While the Los Angeles Lakers were without Anthony Davis in their victory over the Portland Trail Blazers, they did welcome back another big man in Jaxson Hayes. The high-energy center had been out for more than a month due to an ankle sprain that was re-aggravated and was inserted into the starting lineup in his first game back.
Hayes finished with four points and six rebounds while playing just 18 minutes as he still is regaining his conditioning. But overall, the center felt good in his return.
“It felt good. Felt good. It felt really good,” Hayes said after the win. “Felt great being back out there with the guys. Energy was good, so it was nice.”
Timeframes on a return from ankle sprains are always difficult to judge, but for a seven-footer who relies on his athleticism and leaping ability to make an impact, Hayes had to be extra cautious. Considering it had already been aggravated once, the Lakers exercised even more caution and the big man admitted this past month rehabbing was tough.
“The past month was definitely been a little hard,” Hayes added. “It’s probably the longest I have been out in my career. But just rehabbing every day. Lifting and then, like, just getting, like stationary shots for the first week and a half, and then finally got to actual workouts. Then just conditioning, like every day, still out of shape, but I’m gonna get there.”
As Hayes said, the conditioning is still returning and he admitted staying in shape was the most difficult thing while he was out.
“For me, I was just trying to stay in shape,” Hayes said. “That was my biggest thing. I mean, it’s hard to do. Obviously, I can go on the bike, starting to go on the treadmill, like last week, so I went on the court, like half a week ago. But really, it’s just to stay in shape is the hardest part really during those times.”
Hayes was really coming into his own as a reserve for the Lakers when he went down and hopefully he will be able to regain that form in time. Trying to stay in condition while rehabbing an ankle is tough as you don’t want to put too much pressure on it, but now that he is back he will hopefully be able to get to where he needs to be to continue to contribute for this team.
Jaxson Hayes missed being on the court with his Lakers teammates
Something that Jaxson Hayes has brought to the Lakers since he joined the franchise has been a great positive energy that really rubs off on his teammates. To that point, along with the conditioning, Hayes admitted that not being able to be around his teammates was tough for him.
“Also, I feel like the most difficult part for me was just not being able to be out there with the guys. That’s been a huge thing for me, just getting back around the team, having my camaraderie again. New guys fit in perfectly fine.”
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