In 2015, without a doubt player injuries were an influencing factor in the NBA playoffs and a lot of Cavs fans were left wondering “what if’’s?” What if Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving were injury free? Would the Cavs have been the NBA champions? The answer is that we will never know.
As I take a look at today’s NBA injury report, it remains to be seen if J.R. Smiths injury will have an impact on his team for the remainder of the Cavs/Pacers series. Right now, Golden State appears to be the team with the most player injuries in their series with Portland. The fact is…there are 12 of the 16 NBA teams in the playoffs who have injured players. Many of which, are listed as “Day to Day” for their status.
In sports, injury prevention is paramount to both player and a team’s success. More and more professional sports teams are utilizing biomechanical screening assessment tools in their training facilities to assist them in efforts to achieve this goal. The results gathered from movement capture screenings allow teams identify risk factors in a proficient way. The objective of testing is to identify potential injury risks early and to resolve issues before a player can become injured.
I just got back from working the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament (PIT) where I was the tournament’s sports therapist. My job? Help keep players’ bodies together so they can perform their best in the event. You can imagine just HOW busy and popular “Miss Dianne” quickly became at PIT.
Imagine finishing a tough college season, and then having to play against the best seniors in the country in an All-Star tournament. To make competition more intense, 5 players from this tournament will be sent to the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago. Considering that this year’s NBA draft combine is not scheduled to have any college seniors in it, PIT is a last chance for some of these guys to have a shot at the NBA. (No pressure there!)
During PIT, I had the pleasure of working along side a biomechanical screening assessment company called Kitman Labs. I was thrilled to see the amazing “Before” and “After” results of my players right after they got off my table! The guys at Kitman Labs are processing reports now for the NBA teams and will be sending me my data results as well. I’ll share my results on a blog entry soon!
Now that I’m back in Texas…I’m looking forward to seeing many of my players again for a “tune-up” in my office in San Antonio during their NBA team visits!
Cheers and Good Luck Guys,
“Miss Dianne”
