During a Summer League Game, Dennis Smith Jr. did this:
The scientific reason for Dennis Smith Jr. dunking 2 weeks after tearing ACL in high school
Smith is a freakish athlete, and maybe this helps explain why.
Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY Sports
It might have been the best play of summer league, but Smith just missed it. Honestly, it looks like he almost jumped too high, throwing it off the back of the rim. That would be a ridiculous statement for most people but a valid one for Smith, who reportedly has a 48-inch vertical leap.
Talking about Smith’s leaping ability made us remember this fact about him: Many people know Smith tore his ACL in high school, but did you know he was dunking just two weeks after tearing it?
Two weeks.
Another article says it was two months, so Smith’s dad (who gave the two weeks quote) might have been exaggerating. That’s still a ridiculously short amount of time, though. There’s actually a scientific explanation for it, as told in this Fox Sports article (that hasn’t pivoted to video yet):
For Smith Jr., the road to recovery was hard, and started the day of his diagnosis last year. Smith Jr. knew before he even left California that he had torn his ACL, an injury that would require him to sit out at least 10 months and miss his entire senior year of basketball. But when he got home, he quickly realized that the injury — while serious — might not have been as worse as originally feared. There was no pain and swelling in his knee, allowing doctors to operate almost right away. And when they did go in for surgery, they found a surprise:
Smith Jr. had an extra ligament in his knee. If you didn’t even know that was possible, you’re certainly not alone, as only 20 percent of all humans have one, doctors told Smith Sr. But those who do have the added benefit of quicker recovery times when coming off serious injuries like the one Junior suffered.
Ligaments are tissues that connect bones at a joint, and the human knee typically has four. It would seem Smith has a fifth, which just makes everything that much easier.
That’s right — Smith Jr. tore his ACL and it basically didn’t even affect him. This dude must be Wolverine or something. And the Mavericks are trying to keep him that way, with a regimented routine to help him land properly.
No wonder he has the perfect demeanor to replace Dirk Nowitzki as the next Mavericks face of the franchise.
