LOS ANGELES — A day or two after he underwent surgery on a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in January 2021, Thomas Bryant was ready to start his journey back to the basketball court. To his doctors' dismay, he was a very impatient patient.
"I was trying to get out and walk," said Bryant, who was then playing for the Washington Wizards. "They said no."
He learned not to rush his recovery, which took a bit more than a calendar year. But he never doubted, through even the toughest days, that he'd once again be able to bring high energy and dominate at center for enough stretches to make him a valued contributor.
