Kevin Love insisted his recent hand injury was a case of pushups gone wrong Wednesday.
Love said he injured his hand during a pre-practice workout session with his personal trainer on October 17. He said he felt the swelling in his hand immediately, but continued to try a weight-bearing exercise before rushing to the team’s athletic trainer. He was then sent to the hospital where X-rays revealed two broken bones.
“I know what happened, I’m not trying to get around it, I’m not trying to lie,” Love said. “That’s what happened … It was pretty much a freak accident. It was a weird thing. It just happened.”
Love also said he understood it was more “sexy” for him to have injured his hand having punched someone or something, but that it was “more idiotic, for lack of a better term.”
There was doubt about whether Love’s story that he injured his hand performing knuckle pushups was true or not. The fact that it took a day for him to give an official reason for his injury also made many people skeptical about his story’s validity. Love said he waited to release a statement because he was too upset to think clearly.
The 24-year-old is expected to miss another four to six weeks because of the injury. He is hoping that his return will be “sooner than later, as soon as possible.” The Timberwolves will have to play their season opener at home against Sacramento Friday without Love and Ricky Rubio, who is out for at least two more months while recovering from a knee injury.
