I Played Basketball After My Hip Replacements

In early November of 2001 I had my right hip replaced, after years of suffering from the effects of arthritis. I was very young for such a procedure, only 44 years old, but my playing sports all my life had caught up with me. I had bone on bone in my right hip, as there was none of the normal cushioning left that makes things go smoothly, and I had no other choice eventually but to have a hip replacement, which I figured would put an end to my days as an athlete.

I especially loved playing basketball, and I had continued to do so despite the pain that would accompany such foolishness. I literally would have to crawl up the stairs of my home after playing to get into the shower, yet it was worth it to keep playing. When things got to the point that even I realized I had to do something about my hip pain, I was pragmatic about things. The day before my scheduled surgery, I went to a local running track by myself and ran one last lap at full speed, sprinting down the last hundred yards or so as fast as I could go, knowing that my legs would never again be able to carry me that fast. I had the surgery and tried to make the best of things.

The recover went well, but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't painful. There was no longer any pain at all in the actual hip joint, as it had been replaced by a ball and socket type prosthesis, but where my new hip went into the top of my femur hurt at times. The incision along the side of my hip, where my doctor had gone into perform the procedure, required thirty staples to close and gave me loads of discomfort. The physical therapist that came in once I was deemed ready for his services put me through some grueling workouts to strengthen my leg. One month from my surgery I was up and walking okay, but unable to do much more than that; in fact, I needed my brother and best friend to put up the Christmas lights on the house, as I was unable to go up a ladder with any confidence.

When January came I was feeling stronger and getting along very well, although I could still feel the pain on the incision, where muscles and tissue had been cut during the hip replacement. But as I got stronger, the notion that I could once again try to play basketball started to creep back into my head. I dared not tell my doctor this tidbit, but had to tell my wife, who had long since grown immune to the pounding I put my body through for the sake of competition and signed off on the idea, although she resembled Pontius Pilate in how she washed her hands of whatever consequences I would suffer. At the end of January, I stepped back on the court, with everyone well aware that they would have to take it easy on me and that I would do most of my shooting from the outside.

Let me explain that the court we played on was at an elementary school, was the length of maybe half a regulation court, and was carpeted. The rims were also what are known as "dunk rims", as they were maybe a bit over eight and a half feet high. So the running I had to do was kept to a minimum until I got my strength back, which did not take long. Soon I was almost as good as new, and played with more abandon each time out, able to drive to the basket, shoot over people, and jam the basketball home as well. I had some discomfort at times where the leg bone met the prosthesis and along the incision, but nothing I couldn't live with.

I did have to learn how to leap off of my left leg, as I had always been a right-footed jumper, but this was not a big problem. I could not jump as high as I had been able to prior to the surgery, but in that venue I didn't have to. I even played a few games on a local regulation court, but did not mix things up inside like I had been known for. Most of my basketball playing though was limited to once a week at the dunk rims, which I looked forward to immensely.

I continued playing basketball despite my hip replacement until late in 2005, when my left hip finally had had enough, full of pain from the same type of arthritis that had afflicted the right one. I had my left hip replaced in December of that year, and advances in the surgery meant that I only needed fifteen staples in this incision. This time I thought that my basketball career was over in no uncertain terms, as I had a hard time even maintaining any sort of slow trot months after the surgery. However, I was still able to go to the courts and shoot around, which led me to trying to play one more time. I was coaxed out of my forced retirement by my daughter's boyfriend, who wanted to play me one on one, a challenge that I could not find myself able to refuse. He gave way too much size to me for him to have a chance, and even though I was limited severely defensively, unable to react to his movements when he hade ball, I had no trouble trouncing him soundly.

I have never told my surgeon how much I was and am still able to do on my two hip replacements, as I do not want to risk his wrath. When I think of how the wonderful athlete Bo Jackson was able to play Major League Baseball after his hip replacement, I am filled with awe, because I know how hard it is, and was, to simply play a pick-up basketball game. I in no way recommend to anyone that has had hip replacement surgery to undertake anything as strenuous as basketball, but I am thankful for modern medicine that I am still able to pursue such endeavors.