Former IU basketball star Jalen Hood-Schifino shares details on surgery expected to take place in Lakers rotation – The Daily Hoosier

Former IU basketball one-and-done guard Jalen Hood-Schifino is fully recovered from a spring injury and is fully participating in Los Angeles Lakers training camp.

New Lakers head coach JJ Redick says the 2023 first-round draft pick is expected to be part of the team's rotation when the season begins later this month.

Earlier this week, the former IU star revealed that he shared details about his injury and road back to the court.

“I just had back pain that caused something in my disc and it hit a nerve in my right leg,” the Lakers guard said Monday at the Lakers' media day. “When I was young and got that surgery, it wasn't a crazy surgery, it was a small surgery. The recovery time was good and I feel great now and am healthy and ready to go.”

“I think the main goal of my back surgery on March 21 was to get healthy and get my back feeling good,” Hood-Schifino said. “It was a great offseason, a long offseason. But I feel healthy now and obviously being in the gym with coach JJ and the rest of the staff was great. They’ve built a culture here, especially for us young guys to come in and grind, so this summer was really good for me and the other young guys.”

Hood-Schifino said he played his best basketball in the G League last season before the injury. There, he averaged 22 points, 4.8 rebounds and 5.5 assists while shooting 47.3% from the field and 43.2% from 3-point range on more than five attempts.

The Lakers reported Hood-Schifino underwent a successful lumbar microdiscectomy in March. As a rookie, he played only 21 games for the NBA franchise, averaging 5.2 minutes and 1.6 points per game.

Last season also started promisingly before a wave of injuries ruined his rookie season. Then Lakers head coach Darvin Ham said a year ago that he expected Hood-Schifino to have a long NBA career based on the way he played in the team's training camp.

Hood-Schifino was selected 17th in the first round of the NBA draft in June.

The Pittsburgh product started all 32 games played for IU in 2022-23. He was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year after averaging 13.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 0.8 steals per game.

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