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SALT LAKE CITY – It's been over five weeks since Utah Jazz guard Collin Sexton limped off the court after straining his left hamstring in the early minutes in a loss at Memphis.
That was the last time he played in a game. Since then, it's been a weekly updates, all ending in the same phrase: "He will be re-evaluated in a week."
The problem for Sexton is he's running out of weeks. Utah's regular season finale is two weeks from Sunday, which begs the question: Will he be suiting up again this season?
"Absolutely," the ever-joyous Sexton said on Friday.
Sexton had just been given the reins of the Jazz offense when the injury — the second hamstring issue he dealt with (the other was on his right side) this season — occurred.
The Jazz had traded Mike Conley, which opened up the point guard minutes to Sexton. In the four full games he started after the trade deadline, he averaged 19.4 points on 54% shooting and 5.5 assists.
Suddenly, he was back on the bench waiting … and waiting … and waiting. He missed most of last season with a torn meniscus and seven games earlier with a hamstring strain on his other leg; another injury was tough to take.
"Very frustrating. Very, very frustrating," Sexton said, admitting that he wasn't given this timeline in the days following the hamstring strain. But, in Sexton fashion, he was quick to add a positive spin to it all.
He has said he's learned how to see the game differently while sitting on the bench, and he's enjoyed being a "secondary coach" and "cheerleader" for the team.
He's pulled teammates aside to go over plays during breaks in the game and explained what he's seeing from his point of view. And he's been able to work the refs a bit, too.
During his regular visits with officials, he's questioned why certain fouls were called and then can relay that information back to his teammates.
"Like, just like telling 'Dok (Udoka Azubuike), 'They're catching you on that second bump,'" Sexton explained.
It's all about trying to help as much as he can, even if he can't be in the actual game. But he thinks that's coming soon.
"I've just pretty much been ramping up and just starting to get back out there," Sexton said. "It's tough just sitting there on the bench and watching; it's very tough."
And so he's tried his best to speed up the timeline as much as he could.
"We're working day and night, early in the morning before practices and before shootarounds, just to get back," he said. "And also been working on my craft and working on things. So when I do come back, I can just fit right in and also just be ready to go. So I feel like my craft has gotten better. I feel like I've gotten better even though I haven't been playing games."
He might be able to show that soon. Sexton feels he's in the final stages of recovery. It's been a longer-than-expected process, but he also understands why that's been the case.
"At the end of the day, I don't want to have to ever revisit hamstring issues," he said. "Now we're just trying to correct everything and get everything right, so moving forward we know what works for me and works for my body and we can make sure that we don't have to miss games."
Considering the injury is on the same leg as the torn meniscus he suffered last season, there's another reason to be extra cautious.
"I feel good and very, very excited with my progression and just really ready to get back out there and ready to play," Sexton said.
Will that be this season? He's confident it will be, but the clock is ticking.
