I didn’t punch the wall…at all
— Kyrie Irving (@KyrieIrving) July 15, 2012
OK, Kyrie. Then how the heck did you break a bone in your hand?
Perhaps Irving is taking issue with the word “punched.” Maybe he just slapped the wall.
Either way, he now needs surgery but is expected to be healed in time for the start of training camp.
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From Mary Schmitt-Boyer of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer: “The injury occurred during the first of two practices when Irving hit some padding on the wall after turning the ball over near the end of practice. He shook his hand repeatedly afterward and tried to return to the scrimmage before eventually taking himself out. He left the session with his hand wrapped in ice, went to Spring Valley Hospital and returned for the evening practice with his right hand in a cast. “It was just a freak accident,” Irving said. “I broke a really delicate bone in my hand.” He said there was not enough pain to indicate a serious injury, but when it got hit again during the scrimmage, he knew something was wrong. Right now, it sounds as if his spirits hurt worse than his hand. … “I’m fine,” he said. “I am a little disappointed, a freak accident like that. I have to be more responsible about my health. It was just crazy. It happened so fast. That thing that I did — hitting the pad on the wall — I’ve done it so many times. This time was just a freak accident. I’ve done it before. I was like, ‘Oh, man. Dang I messed up.’ I kept playing and then once I hit it again that’s when I knew something was wrong.”
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