The news broke this morning: Juancho Hernangomez has been diagnosed with mononucleosis and will be out indefinitely.
Marc Stein confirmed the “out indefinitely” part while the Nuggets announced he would not make the road trip, and that’s to be expected with mono. It’s a virus so there is no medication to be taken for it, and it can enlarge a patient’s spleen putting them in danger in any contact sport. Basketball is not football or hockey in terms of contact, but falling to the floor is still an accepted hazard that could put Hernangomez’s life at risk if he is in that percentage with spleen issues.
The normal timeframe for the virus to run it’s course is 4-6 weeks, but it can take longer than that for an athlete to regain his conditioning, as working out with mono is extremely difficult and even counter-productive to recovery. Jerami Grant had a bout of mono a few years ago and struggled with its effects and his recovery for months afterward. Hopefully the Nuggets caught it in time for Juancho to get on the best recovery plan and he won’t miss that kind of time.
Something was up with Juancho Hernangomez ever since Eurobasket, with Malone even commenting on his lack of energy. At least now we know why, and Hernangomez can get on the mend for Denver and get back to being his usual hustling, shot-making self.
Here’s hoping for a quick and full recovery for the Spaniard who is a big part of Denver’s youth movement – they need his contributions going forward.
