Luka Doncic shows off his amazing soccer skills on the basketball court
The NBA world was shocked when they learned that Victor Wembanyama would be ruled out for the season with deep vein thrombosis – a type of blood clot that requires medical intervention. As shocking as it was when Victor Wembanyama was announced with the injury, Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard was also announced with it shortly after. It’s created a major concern among fans as to why it keeps occurring among basketball players. The league’s in chaos-is this a curse targeting the hardwood’s elite?
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To explain the situation, Jared Weiss from The Athletic conducted interviews with numerous doctors across California. “It’s not genetics or familial. It just randomly happens in certain people and is more common in people who have repetitive arm movements,” said Dr. Christopher Yi, vascular surgeon at Memorial Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, Calif. “Wembanyama, that’s probably what’s going on with him. In golf, Nelly Korda had that. It’s just sort of random people with repetitive arm movements.” Every slam dunk, every fadeaway-could it be a loaded dice roll for disaster?
No one knows when they’ll return!
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When it comes to a recovery timeline, each person is different. Getting a definitive timeline would be irresponsible to claim. “The recovery is unpredictable and it’s all based on how long it takes for the blood clot to dissolve,” said Dr. Cheng-Han Chen. “Depending on the person, the time it takes for the blood clot to resolve could be anywhere from three months to a year. I understand why teams would be like, ‘We can’t give a timeline.’ Because if I were the doctor, I would tell the teams, ‘I can’t give you a timeline.’ ”
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The scary part to watch out for is if the blood clots travel to the lungs and heart. That’s where the recovery could be much more long term. “If you get blood clots in the legs and they go to the lung, a PE, the recovery is much different,” Yi said. “You need to be on long-term blood thinners. You may have long-standing effects on leg swelling and lung function. That’s when you sometimes see athletes have to retire.” One rogue clot could turn this scare into a tragedy.
Wemby’s hope, Dame’s mystery
In the case of Wembanyama, because of the DVT being in his arm, it seems like there’s a great optimism that his recovery won’t be too long. He already reportedly underwent surgery recently, and there’s optimism that he’ll be ready to play for the French national team at the FIBA EuroBasket tournament. Lillard’s future hangs in the balance-will he dodge the bullet too?
