Gordon Hayward undergoes successful left ankle surgery

The Celtics revealed more details of Gordon Hayward's ankle surgery on late Thursday, announcing the All-Star forward underwent successful bony and ligamentous stabilization surgery for the fracture dislocation of his left ankle sustained on Opening Night.

The surgery was performed by Drs. Mark Slovenkai and Brian McKeon at New England Baptist Hospital and was assisted by Dr. Anthony Schena, following consultations with Dr. David Porter of Methodist Sports Medicine in Indianapolis.

The team announced no specific timetable for Hayward’s return, but the C's did confirm he is expected to make a full recovery.

BSJ Analysis: Boston Sports Journal's medical expert Dr. Jessica Flynn believes her original analysis of the injury lines up with the new information. There is a possibility that he could recover in as soon as four months in a best-case scenario according to Flynn, but the far more likely possibility is that the team stays cautious with the 28-year-old and keeps him sidelined for the entire season. 

In comments made to Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald, Danny Ainge wouldn't rule out the prospect of Hayward returning this year but tried to downplay the possibility.

“I’m not a doctor, and I wasn’t in the surgery, so I don’t really know,” Ainge told the Herald when asked if he was leaving the door open. “And it’s still too early to tell. I mean, he just got out of surgery at midnight (Wednesday) night, and he was resting all day (yesterday) since he got no sleep (Wednesday). I honestly don’t know if anybody knows that.

“But I think it’s just safe to say that we’re not counting on him this year and go from there. Just take the pressure off him and let him heal correctly is the most important thing and not even really talk about when he should return to play. That’ll work itself out over time. Everybody heals differently.”

With Hayward projected to miss the season, the Celtics will have the opportunity to apply for a disabled player exception in the coming weeks, which is worth up to $8.4 million if approved by the NBA. Boston would be able to use that money to acquire a single player via trade or free agency. Bostonsportsjournal.com will have extended analysis on the specific restrictions a team has with any DPE in the coming days.

Here is video of Hayward addressing the Garden crowd from his hospital bed on Wednesday night.

Gordon Hayward message to fans from Boston Sports Journal on Vimeo.