Doctor: Back surgery should help Sullinger long term

When Jared Sullinger underwent back surgery last week, the hope was that the procedure would help alleviate any future back issues. According to Dr. Sean Rockett of Orthopedics New England, who spoke with CSNNE, that could definitely be the case. From the interview (link).

"If it's a straightforward disc, which is what it sounds like from the reports, then yeah, it could make him feel much more comfortable out there and he may have no further issues in the future," Rockett told Gary Tanguay on 'Sports Sunday'.


And will he recover in time for the playoffs?

"I wouldn't bet on it, no."

OK, so don't pencil Sully in for the playoffs, but overall this should be seen as good news. Of course whenever a player (or anybody for that matter) undergoes surgery, it's supposed to help solve the issue, but for Sullinger it seems like the procedure could cut off potentially debilitating back issues in the future. It's also relieving that Danny Ainge knew that the surgery was something that had to happen eventually, but that the pain Sullinger had been feeling pushed up the timeline a bit.

Sullinger averaged 6.0 points, and 5.9 rebounds in 19.8 minutes per game during his rookie campaign. He is expected to be 100% in time for training camp.

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