NBA

Nets hope Deron’s ankle problems in past after latest surgery

The Nets announced Tuesday that Deron Williams underwent successful surgery on both of his troublesome ankles and said he should be fully recovered in time for training camp this fall.

“The arthroscopic surgery performed today on Deron’s left ankle included the removal of spurs from the front and back of the ankle, as well as a cleaning out of his ankle joint,” Dr. Martin O’Malley, the Nets’ foot and ankle specialist, said in a statement. “In addition, Deron underwent a procedure on his right ankle to remove a loose bone fragment that was below his right ankle joint.

“Deron is expected to be on crutches for 4-6 weeks and then begin rehabilitation. He is scheduled to begin light court activities in August, which will progress to full basketball activities in September. Deron is expected to make a full recovery and be ready for the beginning of training camp.”

The Nets hope this procedure will allow Williams to finally put the ankle issues he’s dealt with for the past two seasons behind him, issues that Williams admitted at locker room cleanout day earlier this month left him feeling like he had let people down.

“I think he’s his biggest critic,” Nets general manager Billy King said the same day. “The one thing about it is he kept battling back, kept fighting back.

“I think it took a while where he got the spring back in his legs. You guys talked about him dunking … that’s something that he never had to think about. It just became natural [to be able to do it]. I think as a player when you lose that ability it messes with your ability because your mind says one thing and your body can’t do it, it’s frustrating.”

After Williams signed a five-year, $98 million contract with the Nets in July 2012, he dealt with synovitis in both ankles throughout the 2012-13 season, leading to him getting multiple rounds of cortisone shots and a round of platelet rich plasma treatment just prior to the All-Star Break.

But after a terrific finish to that season – Williams averaged 22.9 points and 8.0 assists over his final 28 games – he went into last summer thinking he’d overcome the ankle issues.

That was before he suffered a sprained right ankle and bone bruise during a workout in Utah in early September. The injury limited him to only a few minutes of preseason action. Williams then sprained his left ankle multiple times during the season, leading to him missing a combined 16 games and receiving more cortisone shots and another round of PRP treatment in January. He injured his left ankle again in Game 6 of the Nets’ first-round series against the Raptors.

“I thought, like I said, I thought they were good,” Williams said. “Then I ended up spraining the [right] one, then as soon as the season started I sprained the [left] one twice, three times … it was really, back-to-back-to-back.”

Williams showed flashes of brilliance during the second half of the regular season and again in the playoffs, but finished with averages of 14.3 points and 6.1 assists – easily his lowest numbers since his rookie year in Utah. Williams attributed the statistical decline in part to the way the Nets adjusted their style of play.

“We played a lot different this year, too,” Williams said after the Nets were eliminated by the Heat. “I’m not gonna be a guy coming out here and scoring 30. That’s not how we play. We’re an equal-opportunity team. But I definitely can play better, I can shoot better than I did in the playoffs. But it was tough. Definitely confidence-wise, I used to step on the court and feel like I was the best player no matter who played against, so I gotta get back to that.”

The Nets hope Tuesday’s procedures will allow him to do just that.