Injured Deron Williams Unsure When He Will Play


They mystery surrounding Deron Williams’ health (or lack thereof) continues. The Brooklyn Nets’ star point guard, out with a bum right ankle, says he has no clue when he will suit up again. Per the NY Post: “Asked about his injured ankle — the most talked-about lower extremity since Achilles’ heel — Williams repeated, ‘I appreciate your concern for my health,’ four times. But Williams, whom the Nets had proclaimed would be ready for the start of camp, acknowledged he’ll need to take part in full-contact workouts and scrimmages before he plays, and he has no idea when he’ll do either. ‘I appreciate your concern for my health. I really do. Thank you for that,’’ Williams said while pedaling on a stationary bike, before playing in a Globetrotter-esque 5-on-0 portion of open practice at Barclays Center. He admitted full-contact is the next step for him, but he had no answers when that will come. ‘I would definitely think you’d need to scrimmage before you go out and play an NBA game. I would think. I don’t know, I’m not sure. I would think you’d have to do that, so when that happens I’ll let you guys know. … Listen I think you guys should go talk to [trainer] Timmy Walsh and [team Dr.] Riley Williams, because they can answer the questions better than I could.’ Williams suffered a sprained right ankle and bone bruise during an offseason workout in Utah, but at the time the Nets announced he would be ready by the start of training camp. But he has been limited to non-contact work since. ‘It’s frustrating having to sit out, frustrating having to watch them play,’ Williams said. ‘Practice has been fun to watch, but also frustrating to watch because I can’t be out there. They’ve had a lot of battles out there, a lot of great practices and I want to be a part of them. So at times I feel like I’m not part of this team right now because I’m not out there, I want to be a part of this team when I am practicing. Every day it’s getting better. Just being really precautious. … [Kevin Garnett] and Paul [Pierce] know how much I want to get out on the court right now. But I’m just listening to everybody’s advice and making sure I’m 110 percent and there’s not going to be any lingering effects. I go out and tweak my ankle and I’m set back another month. I don’t want to do that. That’s what we’re doing right now.’ Coach Jason Kidd said he has no clue when Williams might be ready for contact, and a Nets spokesman said Walsh and Riley Williams were unavailable for comment.”