Whether it was Lionel Simmons, who ended up with tendinitis in his right wrist and forearm after playing on his Gameboy too much, or Muggsy Bogues, who once ended up missing the second half of a game after inhaling fumes of an ointment that was being used to treat a sore muscle at halftime, NBA players have missed games due to weird and non-basketball related injuries since forever.
The same goes for Denver Nuggets star Aaron Gordon, who missed his team’s last two games because of dog bites.
Gordon incurred injuries to his hand and face on Christmas night due to a bite from his own Rottweiler. Initially, there was no specified recovery timeline for these injuries. However, Gordon expressed his readiness to participate in today’s game against the Charlotte Hornets.
Speaking to Bennett Durando of The Denver Post, Gordon shed some light on how the incident happened to begin with:
“I guess it’s a little bit embarrassing, but not too embarrassing to where I can’t talk about it. I don’t drink a lot during the season. I probably had a little bit too much eggnog. I was kind of roughhousing with my dog, and I think my dog got a little excited and just basically chomped down. Gave me a bite. And I was basically wrestling him off of me, and then he bit my hand.
For lack of better words, I was (messing) around with my dog, and when you (mess) around, you find out.
He’s a good boy. He’s a good dog. Very attached. Very sweet. Very strong. Great dog.”