West Virginia head coach Ross Hodge said Thursday that sophomore point guard Amir Jenkins is making steady progress after undergoing two offseason shoulder surgeries.
Hodge explained that Jenkins had surgery on his left shoulder shortly after the season, then later had the right one repaired once he regained enough range of motion. That second procedure came “right at the 1st of July,” and Hodge said Jenkins is now “recovering from that one, making good progress in both of those and just checking the boxes.”
The next steps, according to Hodge, are the usual ones: getting range of motion back, building strength, then moving into non-contact work before eventually returning to full contact.
Jenkins spent much of last season playing through a torn labrum in his left shoulder, an injury that clearly affected his shooting and offensive production. Even so, he still gave WVU useful minutes off the bench and was especially steady on defense, where the shoulder issue was less limiting.
The right shoulder injury happened late in the season at TCU, but Jenkins did not know he had torn that labrum too until imaging on the left shoulder led doctors to check the right side as well.
Hodge pointed to Jenkins’ approach as a reflection of his toughness. He didn’t complain, didn’t lean on the injury as an excuse, and kept trying to help the team however he could, even when he was clearly limited on offense. Hodge also noted that Jenkins reclassified, meaning he should have been playing his senior year of high school last season instead of competing in the Big 12 as a 17-year-old.
There is still no exact timetable for when Jenkins will be back in basketball activities or fully healthy, but the update from Hodge was clearly positive.
In 32 games last season, Jenkins averaged 3.4 points, 2.1 rebounds, and two assists while shooting 33% from the field and 28% from three-point range. He has four years of eligibility left.
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