Nets’ Nic Claxton says back injury is ‘long-term thing’ after return from three-game absence

Nets center Nic Claxton returned to the court Friday night against the Philadelphia 76ers after missing the past three games due to a lower back strain, but noted the injury will be a “long-term thing” he’ll have to manage throughout the rest of the season.

“It’s like a long-term thing, but it’s gonna take a while for it to feel a lot better,” Claxton said. “Just strengthening my core, glutes and everything.”

Claxton received an epidural injection on Nov. 15 after playing just 24 minutes due to the injury against the Boston Celtics on Nov. 13.

The center played only 22 minutes off the bench on Friday in Brooklyn’s 113-98 loss, scoring 12 points with eight rebounds and three assists. Claxton told reporters after the game he suffered the injury initially over the summer and it’s been a “challenge” for him since then.

“Everybody always manages something, but this I’ll probably be managing for a while,” Claxton said.

He added: “Yeah, I mean, it was just the summer. I initially hurt my back in the summer. So, my back has been lingering since then and it’s definitely been frustrating. It’s always a different challenge. Of course, the back is tough because it controls everything you do, pretty much. But it’s just another challenge. So, I’ve just gotta lock in and be ready to hoop.”

Claxton has played in 12 games this season, averaging only 24.6 minutes per game with 8.9 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks per contest. Those numbers a surprising drop from his 2023-24 season averages of 11.8 points, 9.9 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks per game over 29.8 minutes of action.

When asked if he was under a minutes restriction in his first game back, Claxton said he was unsure, but will stay prepared to play for as long as possible.

“I don’t really know. This year has been kind of up and down,” Claxton said. “Just being ready for whatever minutes that I’m able to play, being ready to go and adjusting to that.”

Head coach Jordi Fernandez, who has impressed during his first year on the job, did not say Claxton was on a minutes restriction and clarified the center would not be playing if he was not fully healthy.

“The team, the medical team, and performance, they’ve been addressing it,” Fernandez said. “And obviously if he plays, it’s because we believe he is 100 percent or 200 percent to play.”