“It’s just put me in an emotional state. That’s just my brother.” Utah Jazz player Keyonte George was just one amongst the many, visibly shaken in the aftermath of Taylor Hendricks sustaining an injury. With 6 minutes remaining in the 3rd quarter of the recent Jazz-Mavericks matchup, Hendricks ran up the court with intense speed. But, he stumbled suddenly, causing his body weight to fall completely on his right leg and injuring it. Even from a faraway glance, it was apparent that the ailment was quite serious.

Nothing more was quite telling than the worried expressions on his teammates’ faces. Even after paramedics took Hendricks off court on a stretcher, observers believed the incident had probably left every Jazz squad member in shock. As it turned out, they weren’t the only ones.

During a post-game Q&A session with Dallas Mavericks star Kyrie Irving, a reporter touched base on Hendricks’s injury to get a quote from the player. Irving revealed he had given the injured player a “hand on the shoulder” just as he escorted the latter out. Though the Mavericks star admitted Hendricks may not have noticed it since “he was in shock”, it didn’t matter to him. After all, being in the NBA for 13 years, he has seen his fair share of major injuries and may have even experienced a few on hand. Despite this, Irving could not help but admit that he felt upset over what had occurred.

“But yeah, just praying for him, praying for his family, praying that he’ll be back even stronger, man,” said the 32-year-old shooting guard/point guard. “It does something to the psyche as an athlete when you see something like that, but then you got to keep playing. But we definitely feel for him, and I feel for him. I’m just praying that he’s okay.”

Like Kyrie, Luka Doncic also came up right behind him and repeated the action. Even the crowd at the American Airlines Center, which certainly consisted of Mavericks fans, broke into applause, indicating they set aside the NBA rivalry for a moment and simply honored the Jazz power forward.

Sometime after the conclusion of the Mavericks-Jazz matchup, which the home team won by a score of 110-102, they revealed that Taylor Hendricks had developed a fractured right fibula along with a dislocated ankle. In fact, even though the Utah Jazz has yet to provide an official update, the 20-year-old’s fractured right fibula may very well be a season-ending injury.

Hendricks’ injury brought an enormous change to the mood that may have existed during the starting stage of the game. After the officials took the Jazz star away from the court, Klay Thompson sat on a bench, visibly emotional as he held a towel to his face. Cody Williams was walking across with a grim expression. Meanwhile, Keyonte George reportedly even had tears in his eyes. With this in mind, the Jazz members have already started showing appreciation for their team’s athletes.

Jazz Head Coach and players shook like a leaf after Taylor Hendricks’ injury

For Jazz members like Keyonte George, Taylor Hendricks’ potential exit is more of an emotional matter. For others, the injury would prevent them from having a valuable player off the court; and hurting the Jazz’s already bleak chances. The same was highlighted by Jazz head coach Will Hardy, who stated in the aftermath of the game “That’s hard to stomach, he’s put in a lot of hard work. He’s a great kid, and so we’re really just trying to focus on him, his health, keeping him up, his spirits up, as he begins the road of his recovery.” At the same time, Hardy couldn’t help but criticize this part of an NBA season, adding “But these are the moments in sports that suck.”

Amongst the top 5 experienced players on the Utah Jazz’s current squad, Lauri Markkanen had kept Hendricks under observation ever since the last season. Therefore, the 27-year-old believed Hendricks’ non-return would leave a gap in the team’s offensive effort, as he stated, “He (Hendricks) brings a lot to the table. His jump shot is better. He helps with our spacing. A heck of a defender, he brings his length on the floor. We’re going to miss him a lot.”

According to the Salt Lake Tribune, “hugs, daps, and words of support” came in from all sides for the 20-year-old. With a possible major exit coming so early during the NBA season, and the Utah Jazz already standing on a 0-3 win record, we will see how the team recovers from this.