The Road to Recovery

Power forward senior Jack Lieb suffered from a torn ACL during his junior year and has been unable to play basketball since. This year, he continues to work towards the many college offers that were sidelined as a result of his injury. Lieb’s injury is a challenge that he is in the process of overcoming as his basketball career progresses.

“It actually happened on the last day of junior year, I went to open gym, went up for a layup, kind of did a move and unfortunately my knee kind of popped and I tore my ACL. I found out from the doctor a few days later. I had surgery two weeks later,” Lieb said.

The injury hurt his ability to be seen by college recruitment coaches. Since last summer, Lieb has been going through a rehabilitation process that he hopes will allow him to play varsity basketball later this season. He’s confident that his return to basketball will bring more college offers.

“I’ve been rehabbing every single day. Sometimes two, sometimes three times a day. Massage therapy, weight training, lateral movement, conditioning, all that kind of stuff. I’ve been doing that every single day since June 20th, haven’t taken a single day off,” Lieb said.

Lieb was a promising athlete as an underclassman. As a sophomore, he was given the opportunity to play varsity basketball. At 6’8, Lieb’s height allows him to succeed on the court. However, a stress fracture in his back kept him out for most of sophomore year.

“I think what I’ve been so impressed with him over the years is his work ethic to try to rehab himself,” varsity coach Dan McKendrick said. “He works exceptionally hard, he’s committed to whatever the doctors and trainers tell him to do to get healthy. He was all-conference as a junior and a very good player for us. We miss him a lot this year, obviously.”

The summer going into junior year Lieb played for the AAU team, The Wolves, who ended their season as number 12 in the nation. Riding that success, he played varsity his junior year. As a junior, he was already getting basketball offers from Brown University and Illinois State University. Although he planned to receive more college offers over the summer, Lieb was taken out of commission by his ACL tear. However, the ISU and Brown offers still stand.

“When he went down at the open gym, I think everyone felt his pain,” senior varsity teammate Dylan DiMattio said. “After his surgery a lot of us went to his house, brought some stuff and tried to take his mind off of it. It’s very difficult to tear your ACL and stay positive. I give him a lot of credit for staying positive and I give my team a lot of credit for helping him out.”

As his ACL strengthens, Lieb remains positive that he will receive more offers and play next year on the collegiate level. Despite the injury, coaches have continued to contact him.

“The injury gave me a different outlook. Obviously, it’s one of the worst possible things that could happen to me. It kind of sidelined me. Emotionally, I’ve had to deal with a lot. Everyone’s been really supportive. I’m hoping to come back as strong as I can,” Lieb said.

Lieb sees this a learning experience which has encouraged a deep appreciation for the sport he didn’t have before the injury. His rehabilitation has allowed him to hone his skills and focus more of his attention on getting to the next level.

“You never really appreciate the game until something bad happens in your life,” Lieb said. “That’s kind of a cliche-type thing to say, but when something bad happens in your life, whether it be with sports, family, you start to appreciate things more. I’ve definitely learned to appreciate the game more.”

If Lieb doesn’t receive the offers he’s expecting, he’s considering a fifth year of high school at a prep school as an option. Although he’d prefer not to go down that route, he’s not ruling out any opportunities that will allow him to play his favorite game.