PHOENIX — Phoenix Suns guard Damion Lee missed the entire 2023-24 season due to a right meniscus tear he suffered just a few weeks before the start of the season.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Lee decided to re-sign with the Suns again this summer on a one-year, veteran minimum contract, as he looks to bounce back from the injury.
During the Suns first Summer League game yesterday, where Lee was sitting courtside, he provided an update on his recovery to ESPN’s Cassidy Hubbarth.
“Feeling good,” Lee said. “That’s the main focus that I tell everyone. Mentally, I’m in a better spot. Physically, I’m in a better spot.
“I’m about 85% and basically that’s just now transitioning into the contact, live action and all that kind of stuff. On the mend, on the way, so should be a full go for training camp, so that’s one thing that I’m really excited about.”
#Suns Damion Lee says he's about 85% in his meniscus recovery that sidelined him for the entire 2023-24 season in an interview on ESPN, but "should be a full go for training camp."
Lee re-signed with Phoenix on a one-year, veteran minimum contract last week
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Phoenix will likely begin training camp near the end of September or start of October.
The 6-foot-5 Lee, who won the 2022 NBA Finals with the Golden State Warriors, averaged 8.2 points on 44.5% shooting from 3 and 3.0 rebounds across 74 games in the 2022-23 season for Phoenix.
This past season, the Suns finished with a 49-33 record, but were swept in the first round of the NBA playoffs. With 11 players from last year’s team, including Lee, under contract for Phoenix next season, the Suns will take a continuity approach into the 2024-25 season, but will do so under new coach Mike Budenholzer after Frank Vogel was fired after just one season at the helm of the Suns.
“I think next season, for me, first and foremost, it’s just about being healthy and staying healthy,” Lee said to Hubbarth. “Then I think from the team aspect, obviously, having coach Bud, who has experience, has won an NBA championship, along with the guys on our team that play at a high level, that also have many of years of experience, championships as well.
“I think it’s just a matter of that blend. And I think for me, it’s just a matter of doing what I do. Come in there, playing hard, playing smart, being a jolt of energy off the bench, and, I mean, of course, making shots.”
Damion Lee gets real on challenges of recovering from meniscus surgery
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Brendan Mau is a senior writer covering the Phoenix Suns and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @Brendan_Mau
