I have run a marathon. I have done some long backpacking trips. I still play tennis at 55.

But it has hurt every single moment of every day for 23 years. The good news is it felt better every year until this year.

Every injury is different. I would expect his outcome will be much better given his age and being an elite athlete. But the stuff I shared is common to the injury. I learned this on follow up visits with my orthopedic surgeon who specialized in lower leg traumas and had his own technique for repairing pilon fractures. He would bring in the residents and discuss my injury (this was three months after the break) and compare it to my other ankle which is where I learned about the stuff like no space in the joint. He would show the residents how my left foot moved by pulling on the heel while I sat on the table. It would slide forward nearly a full inch which was normal. The other foot barely moved which he said was also normal post pilon fracture.

Gordon Hayward is nowhere near the athlete he was. He doesn't jump the same. People will not be able to tell Rex broke his leg. He will be able to run at full speed. He will be able to jump off his left foot and decently off two feet. He will not be worried about reinjury. But he will be in pain, and he will not be jumping off his right foot. And when he stands the rest of his life, he will stand on his left foot.

Since it sounds like someone here knows the family, I suggest as soon as he is out of the cast, he start doing normal things ASAP. Walk without a limp no matter how bad it hurts. I tried swimming and biking for a few months, but the flapping motion of the foot caused extreme pain. Out of desperation, I tried jogging and soon got enormous relief from the everyday pain which I never expected but am eternally grateful for. Since then, I can swim and bike pain free.

Whatever works for Isaac. The bones will heal fine. Hopefully the soft tissue damage won't be nearly as bad as mine. Mine was not external, but the foot dislocated and rotated 180 degrees - as in backward. As is typical with pilon fractures, my fibula broke at the ankle and near the knee and through the distal tibia (vertical), knocking the corner of the inside of the tiba off (the knobby bone on the inside of the ankle). If he gets a plate on the inside of the ankle, have that removed later. It will cause irritation with shoes/boots.