Jordan Loyd revealed his return timeline / News - Basketnews.com

Jordan Loyd revealed he aims to return to the court in October after he underwent lumbar spine surgery in August.

Credit: Alfonso Cannavacciuolo/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images Credit Alfonso Cannavacciuolo/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images

AS Monaco guard Jordan Loyd believes he won't miss much time despite undergoing lumbar spine surgery in August.

Jordan Loyd

Team:AS MonacoPosition:PG, SGAge:30Height:193 cmWeight:95 kgBirth place:Chicago, United States of AmericaProfileNewsStatistics

"October sometime is the goal, and we'll go from there. So I won't miss too much basketball. Hopefully," Loyd told the EuroLeague website.

Anyone watching Loyd over his four seasons in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague must have been impressed. Not only has he been one of the best scorers in the competition, but he has stood out for his total game as a shooter, passer, and defender.

What makes everything the Monaco guard has done even more impressive is that he was doing so at less than full strength.

Many knew about the broken nose and shoulder injuries that caused him to miss six games in the middle of last season. In addition to that, Loyd was slowed down at times by a bulging disc in his spine.

He had endured the same injury once before when he was playing college basketball a decade earlier.

This summer, he underwent a microdiscectomy, a minimally invasive surgical procedure in which part of the herniated disc is removed to relieve pressure on the spinal nerve column.

"With backs, it's a little tricky… It could be good one day, bad the next. But it was just something that I think is better for me in the long term and nothing too serious, which is great and something I've been through before, which is great. So, mentally, I'm good. I'm happy," Loyd said last week during Monaco's training camp in Turkey.

"I feel better already, and the recovery's been super solid so far since I've been back with the team, been doing great rehab with all the staff here, and yeah, so I just look forward to coming back."

Loyd is on his own training schedule as he prepares for the season, though he has the support of the Monaco staff and his teammates this time. That pales compared to the first time Loyd had his back operated on.

After beginning his college basketball career at Furman University, Loyd transferred to the University of Indianapolis. It was during that time in between school that he had the surgery. Loyd did most of the physical therapy back then on his own.

He estimated that the initial recovery time was "like 6 to 9 weeks," though he is in no rush to match that timeline.

"I've got to take my time and, you know, make sure I recover the right way and just get a little bit stronger," Loyd added.

If there is something that should worry teams around Europe when Loyd finally gets back on the floor, it is this:

"I feel better than I was the last few years, actually. So that's exciting, and I think once I'm feeling better physically, I think I can perform much better, too."

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