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How Mavericks’ Maxi Kleber defied norms in speedy recovery from hamstring surgery

‘Shocked at how advanced medicine is,’ Kleber made his return Tuesday night against the Pacers.

Maxi Kleber had endured several surgeries before the one on his right hamstring in December, so the Dallas Mavericks’ 31-year-old forward thought he knew what to expect.

Casey Smith, Mavericks director of player health and performance, picked him up from his apartment about 5 a.m. Dec. 20 to drive to the hospital. Kleber went under anesthesia just before 8 a.m. and woke up soon after with a piece of his hamstring tendon gone and a four-inch scar down the back of his right leg.

Then came the surprises.

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Kleber never used crutches.

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Nor did he need extra painkillers.

He started rehab exercises right away.

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How?

The intricacies of his hamstring injury, surgery and more than two-month recovery timeline shocked Kleber, marked a new experience for the Mavericks’ medical staff and set in motion a late-season return for when the Mavericks’ new-look offense and slumping defense need Kleber most.

“I don’t recommend doing it just to experience it, but if you ever happen to have it, it’s really impressive,” Kleber said. “I was shocked at how advanced medicine is and how good this came out and how fast it went.”

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RELATED: Mavericks forward Maxi Kleber (hamstring) possibly returning Tuesday vs. Pacers

In hindsight, he can retrace what led to him tearing his right hamstring tendon.

When he first felt pain in his right shin in December, where the tendon connects behind the knee, Kleber figured he just got bumped and bruised. The shin pain increased Dec. 12 after he sprinted for a loose ball at the end of the game against Oklahoma City, but he still practiced the next afternoon.

During that workout, Kleber participated in a 4-on-4 drill in which players dribbled down the court at high speed. He felt an odd sensation in the back of his knee when he crossed midcourt.

“It just felt like a weird feeling,” Kleber said. “I can’t really describe it.”

He limped off to the side, and the Mavericks’ athletic training staff first thought he hyperextended his knee, perhaps because he tweaked his gait to compensate for shin pain. They couldn’t get a clear review of what happened on practice film.

But imaging and the doctor consultation confirmed a diagnosis unprecedented for Smith and his staff.

Kleber had torn the semitendinosus hamstring muscle tendon that connects down to the tibia.

Orlando Magic guard Cole Anthony (50) was fouled by Dallas Mavericks forward Maxi Kleber...
Orlando Magic guard Cole Anthony (50) was fouled by Dallas Mavericks forward Maxi Kleber (42) during the first half of an NBA preseason basketball game at American Airlines Center on Friday, Oct. 7, 2022, in Dallas.(Smiley N. Pool / Staff Photographer)

Most hamstring tears happen in the flesh of the muscle or from the bone where it attaches to the hip. In cases like that — such as Bucks All-Star Khris Middleton’s 2016 injury that kept him out six months when coach Jason Kidd worked in Milwaukee — surgery precedes a long immobilization period to ensure no disruption to the repair while healing.

Kleber’s surgery — a semitendinosus tenotomy — removed torn tissue to promote healing, so he didn’t risk reaggravating a reattachment.

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”The tear was not in the muscle — it was in the tendon, where the tendon attached to the bone,” Smith said. “Now it still takes time for him to get to full comfort and full strength and that, but there’s not as much concern about reinjury.”

Kleber could’ve avoided surgery and recovered on a similar timeline, “but there’s a very high chance that the healing part is not going to be as clean,” Kleber said, “and you’re going to have issues after, and then you might have surgery, but that surgery is going to be way more complicated.”

“That’s why we decided we’re going to do the clean cut,” he continued, “because then you know what to expect.”

Until he didn’t.

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After past surgeries, Kleber often fell back to sleep soon after waking up from the anesthesia.

“Well, for some reason this time, I couldn’t fall asleep again,” Kleber said. “I was like, ‘OK, what’s the point of staying here? Might as well just go home now.’”

Hospital protocol required Kleber to take a wheelchair to the exit, but when he stood up, he felt comfortable putting weight back on both legs. About two hours after his procedure, he walked with just a slight limp.

Smith returned him to his apartment with a pair of crutches, but they’ve sat idle since. Kleber immediately started flexing his quadriceps muscle and receiving light treatment — though not close to the scar — to help reduce swelling.

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A few days later, he returned to the Mavericks’ Design District practice facility and increased his activity level to include isometric leg holds, hip-flexor work and upper-body lifting. After Kleber’s scar healed in a couple weeks, he resumed light shooting on the court.

“There was actually a lot of stuff possible very quickly,” Kleber said. “It was crazy.”

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Because the surgery removed tissue around the tendon and muscle, Smith said Kleber had to retrain his hamstring to engage properly.

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Kleber started by laying on his stomach on the training table and curling his right leg up. Often, Kleber would first curl his right foot in, leaving his calf muscle to do most of the work instead. He had to concentrate on extending his foot during the movement to keep pressure on his hamstring.

“I almost couldn’t do it,” Kleber said. “I did like five reps, and then I had to help with my other leg to do it. It was crazy.”

Fast forward about two months, and Kleber confronted the most challenging part of recovery.

He’d hoped to return before the All-Star break. But after his first one-on-one session in early February — against assistant coach Jared Dudley for post play and fellow rehabber Christian Wood (left thumb fracture) for close-out work — Kleber needed more than a few days to recover.

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“Damn, I can’t even try to push it right now,” Kleber thought the following day. “It’s so aggravated, so on fire.”

A couple more aspects have since slowed Kleber’s eagerness to return. He still has trouble decelerating from a full-speed sprint — a necessity for defensive close-outs, for example — and raising his right leg when he jumps only off his left, like he’d do to catch a lob pass on offense. The Mavericks also held few full-team practices after the All-Star break because it followed a road-heavy stretch last month, leaving Kleber with no consistent opportunities to run, cut and play.

In Dallas’ first full workout postbreak last week, Kleber ran in 5-on-0 and live-action transition drills but then did extra cardio and shooting when the team moved onto 5-on-5.

Kleber felt like he could’ve pushed his hamstring to engage in his first scrimmage, but at the end of a surgery rehab that featured the fastest initial recovery process he’d ever experienced, patience remained his last test.

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Then Feb. 21, Kidd announced that Kleber would be available for the matchup Tuesday against the Pacers. Kleber came off the bench to score nine points on 4-of-6 shooting in 24 minutes in a 124-122 loss to Indiana. He played 20 minutes Thursday in a 133-126 win over Philadelphia, tallying nine points again, while adding six rebounds and three assists.

Twitter: @CallieCaplan

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