Aaron Gordon’s dog bite is the latest bizarre NBA injury
Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon will be away from the team as he recovers from being attacked by a dog on Christmas day. Gordon suffered lacerations on his face and right shooting hand after being bit by a dog following Denver’s victory over the Golden State Warriors, 120-114, on Christmas.
There is no timetable for Gordon’s return but he’s reportedly in good condition. Read the Nuggets’ full statement on Gordon’s injury here.
Gordon is a key piece for the defending champion Nuggets, and a tremendous fit next to Nikola Jokic in the front court. Denver is currently the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference with a 22-10 record at the time of the injury.
This is the second bizarre injury of the NBA season so far. Philadelphia 76ers forward Kelly Oubre Jr. was hit by a car near his home and sustained broken ribs in the accident. Oubre was out of the Philly lineup for nearly a month as he recovered.
Let’s hope Gordon is okay because this sounds like a scary injury and a traumatic experience. A top player on a top team exiting the lineup after being attacked by a dog had us thinking about some of the other bizarre NBA injuries in recent memory. Here’s a quick list:
Derrick Rose cut himself with a knife
The former Chicago Bulls MVP needed 10 stitches in his left forearm after accidentally cutting himself while slicing an apple in bed.
From Dec. 2008:
The rookie guard confirmed he cut himself at home this morning while slicing an apple in bed. Rose says he put the knife on his bed and then later rolled over onto the knife, cutting his arm. He immediately called Bulls trainer Fred Tedeschi who drove Rose to the hospital where he received 10 stitches in his left forearm but is expected to play Tuesday night against the Knicks at the United Center.
Drew Gooden’s infected leg hair follicles
Gooden was riding a streak of 83 consecutive games played in 2004 when he was seen limping at practice. Gooden reportedly had infected leg hair follicles stemming from a spider bite. From ESPN:
The unusual injury, first believed to be spider bites, ended Gooden’s streak of 83 consecutive games since being acquired in atrade from Memphis last year. He was the only Orlando player to see action in all 64 games this season.
Charles Barkley injures Kevin Johnson with a hug
Kendrick Perkins’ collapsing bed
A bed collapsed on Kendrick Perkins’ toe in 2007 causing the big man to miss time. Here’s how Perkins explained the injury:
“Man, that’s a weird story,” Perkins said after practice Tuesday. “I was asleep. I guess whoever put my bed together didn’t put it together right when I moved, so one side of my bed fell. My bed was tilted, so I got out of my bed to go push down on the other side.
“And when I was about getting ready to push down on the other side, the headboard started coming in. So I tried to push the headboard back so it wouldn’t fall over. My foot was under the bed and the other side of the bed fell on my foot.’’
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar misses games after punching stanchion
Via Kelly Dwyer at The Second Arrangement:
Abdul-Jabbar missed his first 16 games in 1974-75 with a broken hand, Kareem punched a basket stanchion in frustration after Don Nelson poked his eye in an exhibition game. Milwaukee dealt stalwart Lucius Allen to Los Angeles early in the season for point guard Jim Price, but not even Price’s lone All-Star campaign could lift an underperforming Milwaukee group into the playoffs.
Latrell Sprewell punched a wall because someone vomited on his yacht
Via ESPN in 2002:
NEW YORK — Latrell Sprewell might have broken his hand by throwing an errant punch at the boyfriend of a woman who vomited on his new yacht, the New York Post reported Friday.
An argument ensued about 2:30 a.m. after a woman Sprewell hadn’t invited vomited on a carpet by the bar area. Sprewell wanted the woman to leave the boat, but her boyfriend objected.
Sprewell took a swing at the boyfriend, missed and hit a wall. Sprewell cursed in pain and asked his guests not to say anything about it, the Post said.
