Isaiah Thomas injury: Former Boston Celtics star set to undergo hip surgery

Former Boston Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas will undergo right hip surgery Thursday, presumably ending his season with free agency looming this summer.

After a magical 2016-17 season with the Celtics, Thomas never recovered from the hip issue that sidelined him for the end of the Eastern Conference Finals. He was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers this summer then dealt to the Los Angeles Lakers months later at the deadline. At both stops, Thomas was limited by his damaged hip, which he hoped would respond to non-surgical rehabilitation. He never approached the level that landed him on the 2016-17 All-NBA second team.

Thomas decided against surgery last summer, but shifted course this week, as the Lakers announced Wednesday. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski tracked down a description of the upcoming surgery:

In a statement received by ESPN on Isaiah Thomas, Dr. Bryan Kelly of the Hospital for Special Surgery in NYC says: "We will be doing a minimally invasive procedure to "clean up" the joint of all inflammatory debris related to his injury from last season."
-- Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) March 28, 2018

It will be fascinating to see the market develop when Thomas hits free agency in a few months. When healthy, he's one of the NBA's best guards, an offense unto himself. The man averaged 28.9 points per game last season while bringing a limited Celtics team to the Conference Finals. But the hip hasn't been the same since he tried to play through the injury last postseason. He spent six-and-a-half months out of the lineup then struggled when he returned. There are a lot of doubts about his health, and, at his size, how he will evolve if he can't find his trademark burst again. The guard could need to sign a short-term contract somewhere to rebuild his value around the league.

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