Inside The Nets

Dariq Whitehead in good spirits after shin surgery: "I pretty much know what to expect"

Nets rookie set to fully recover in the next three months.

Marin Gabric

© John Jones-USA TODAY Sports
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The Brooklyn Nets were saddened when they found out that Dariq Whitehead had to undergo a season-ending surgery. The Nets rookie sustained a stress reaction in his left shin and is required to recover throughout the remainder of the 2023-24 campaign.

On Monday, Dariq ultimately underwent the medical procedure at the Hospital for Special Surgery with Dr. Martin O’Malley in charge. Thankfully, the surgery turned out to be successful, and he is expected to have a healing period of approximately three months.

In good spirits

The surgery marks the third time in nearly two years that Dariq underwent surgery in his lower leg.

It has been a challenging and grinding point of his young basketball career due to injuries, but his spirit is certainly at a high level, and his optimism to fully recover remains intact.

“I can definitely say you never get used to it; it never gets easier, but definitely having to go through [rehab] before, I pretty much know what to expect and how to take care of my body the right way,” Whitehead said.

Part of the Nets' future

Dariq has been limited in his exposure this season for the Nets, in which he only appeared for two games. Nevertheless, he saw a productive time in the team's G League affiliate, the Long Island Nets, wherein he averaged 9.0 points, 2.9 boards, and 1.3 assists in 12 games of their Showcase Cup participation.

As he is assumed to fully recover in the next three months, Brooklyn indicated that Dariq will be a full participant in their offseason development program. It only means that he could potentially see some action in the team's Summer League activities.

“I talked to him [Monday]. He was in good spirits. He’ll stay at home [Monday], stay home [Tuesday]. The hope is that he is a full participant in our offseason development,” Vaughn said.

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Marin Gabric
MARIN GABRIC

Marin's love for writing developed in high school but was furthered in college when he took a number of creative writing courses. Doing sports writing felt like an extremely natural continuation, as it furthered his passions in both writing and basketball.  Marin loves the feeling of looking at stats after a game and analyzing what each team could've done better or what they excel in compared to the rest of the league. And the ability to do so for his favorite team, the Brooklyn Nets, is quite special in itself. 

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