Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard showed a classic result of Achilles torn in the first quarter of Sunday’s Game 4 before immediately grabbing his lower left leg and ankle. He was obviously in pain, and seemed to look around, as if he was surprised by everything he had eliminated.

Many athletes will report feeling like someone feels the sudden outbreak of Achilles tendons when they kick them in the back of the legs, which is the connection between the calf muscles and the foot. (When the calf muscles contract, energy is transferred through the tendon to push the foot away from the ground. It can be as low as pushing the body forward as it is when walking, or as strong as it explodes into the sky.)

Lillard fell into the typical age group at 34, struggling with injuries to elite athletes’ fatal weaknesses. The sport he participates in - repetitive jumps, running and push/pivot movements - put him in a higher risk category. These actions apply loads through repeated and alternating tension/elongation with explosive contraction.

Recently, Lillard was eliminated by the situation due to the deep venous thrombosis (DVT) diagnosis he received in March. DVT or clots that are usually present in calves and early treatment are often concentrated in blood thinners and rest. The idea is not to destroy the clot, but to make it potentially spread to the heart and lungs. While treatment is critical to solving clots, it often leads to the treatment of the area given that athletes are unable to train. Athletes are not allowed to contact in the hemodiluter because of the increased risk of bleeding. Once the medication is stopped, the athlete can return to the competition.

That is, there is always a tube rolling process whenever an athlete returns from a competition for weeks or months of injury due to injury. The ascending period may vary by a number of factors, including the nature of the injury, time, activity level, specific needs of exercise, and the athlete's return mental preparation.

A seasonal calendar may affect the acceleration time of sharp return (i.e., playoffs), but throughout the process, there is extensive dialogue between athletes, medical staff and any other interested parties to discuss potential risks. It is not certain whether weeks of absence increases Lillard's risk of injury, but it may be a unfortunate combination of risk factors that creates an environment for his tendon failure.

What matters now is Lillard's recovery and his expected advance and heading into the 2025-26 season. The surgery will be soon followed by a very controlled mobile payoff. Some athletes have a short cast. Others place it in removable boots. Either way, as the tendon heals, exercise is very controlled early on. Although some exercises are key to ankle mobility, maintenance must be protected rather than overstretching. Achilles' elasticity is the key to its function. Extended repair is like stretching a rubber band until it becomes functional. Once healed, start doing more aggressive exercises and enhancement ranges, and eventually return to running, jumping and other explosive exercises.

Returning athletes usually hover anywhere from six months to one year, NBA athletes recover on average for 10 months, affected by the athlete's overall recovery, return to fitness and seasonal calendar. With the improvement of maintenance technology, athletes look more like their pre-injury selves, but the experience is unique to individuals. Most athletes will report that they will not fully recover from explosiveness until the second season after the surgery.

The majority of the scientific literature of NBA players addressed the return to the game/performance problem, which shows that among those returning to competition (from 70-80%), most people did not return to pre-damage performance levels in terms of game, meeting minutes and efficiency. Dialogue complicates dialogue, as many NBA athletes are in the late stages of their careers, during which these metrics may have fallen.

Still, it’s worth studying the addition of certain players in the sport, whose playback schedules can tell us about Lillard’s way back to the court.

• Kobe Bryant: Bryant is perhaps the most memorable NBA player, who also accidentally recovered from his 34-year-old while injured during the 2013 playoffs. He underwent surgery in April and returned to the operation in December of that year. Kobe is back, but lacks explosiveness. The following year, his season ended prematurely due to a shoulder injury. The following season was his last.

• Klay Thompson: Thompson is in a somewhat unique situation as he recovered from the torn ACL he suffered in the 2019 NBA Finals, forcing him to miss the entire season. He suffered a tear from Achilles as he approached the recovery action to start the 2020-21 season. He eventually returned midway at the 31-year-old 2021-22 season, and as expected, he averaged a few minutes away and his shooting efficiency dropped. But Thompson rebounded in his second year, averaging four minutes per game and posting a pro climax on three-pointers and rebounds.

• Kevin Durant: Durant tore Achilles apart with the Golden State Warriors during the 2019 final. It is worth noting that he signed a four-year contract with the Brooklyn Nets during his recovery, reflecting their confidence in their ability to return at the elite level. Durant has not been out throughout the 2019-20 season, but returned to action the following year and looked strong. He only played 35 games that season, mainly due to other injuries, but he was on the court like the old-fashioned Durant. Perhaps the 18-month window between injury and returning to the game helped improve his performance metrics. Durant's figures suggest that NBA players in their 30s can indeed recover to the pre-damage level of torn behind the fence.