Gordon Hayward Underwent Minor Heel Surgery

The Utah Jazz announced Friday night that swingman Gordon Hayward had minor surgery on his right heel the week prior, mostly to address inflammation.

The 25-year-old led the Jazz in scoring last season, posting a career-high average of 19.3 points in 76 games.

Per the Deseret News:

So it turns out Gordon Hayward really wasn’t healthy when he sat out the final three games of the season. […] Some folks wondered if the Jazz were just holding out their leading scorer to rest him late in the season when he played fewer minutes in some games before missing the final three.

 

The 25-year-old Hayward missed just six games last season, sitting out a game against New York in March with a strained lower back and two games later in March with a shoulder strain besides the final three.

 

Hayward, who led the Jazz with a 19.3 scoring average, has played in 363 of a possible 391 games over his first five seasons. By increasing his scoring average by two points in four consecutive seasons, Hayward joined Kobe Bryant and Gary Payton as the only players in NBA history to accomplish the feat.