PISCATAWAY, NJ - FEBRUARY 26: Betnijah Laney #44 of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights drives to the basket as Akila McDonald #32 of the South Florida Bulls defends during the first half in a game at the Louis Brown Athletic Center on February 26, 2013 in Piscataway, New Jersey. Rutgers defeated South Florida 68-56 for Rutgers head coach C. Vivian Stringer 900th career win. (Photo by Rich Schultz /Getty Images)
Chicago Sky’s Betnijah Laney Talks Rehab For… by uSports
June 3, 2016 is a date Chicago Sky guard Betnijah Laney would prefer to forget.
In the second quarter of Chicago’s matchup with the Washington Mystics, the same team that her college teammate Kahleah Copper plays for, Laney tore her anterior-cruciate ligament.
Soon after, she learned she tore her meniscus as well, requiring extensive rehab and abruptly ending her 2016 season.
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Laney, 22, will also miss a likely second stint in the WNBL in Australia, where she was one of the best players on the roster for the Perth Lynx, finishing the season averaging 15.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.
PERTH LYNX BIO: BETNIJAH LANEY
“I think my whole time being in college I might have missed two games because of injury,” Laney told uSports in an exclusive interview. “It was a big shocker for me to know that I was going to miss the whole season.”
But there was no use in sulking. Bad luck or not, this was the hand she was dealt.
So instead of feeling sorry for herself, Laney reached out to players and coaches familiar with the injury for advice.
“It was my first injury of this stature and it was tough to hear at first,” she recalled. “My coaches, teammates assured me that I would be okay. I’ve spoken to other players who’ve had the same injury and it’s just all been encouraging. It helps me to feel better.”
Once she cleared the mental hurdle Laney through herself into rehab, which, for now, is a bit challenging.
Since the surgery is still fairly recent and the swelling is still subsiding, Laney is limited in what she can actually do with the knee.
“I really can’t put pressure on it so my rehab consists of just bending and straightening it. Just trying to fire up the muscles that I lost,” she said. “So, right now, that’s pretty much it until I’m really able to put pressure on it and, you know, start doing some really good strength things of that nature.”
In the meantime, the 6-foot guard is working on her upper body and cardio, keeping the other parts in shape for when she is able to work more on the knee specifically.
“I’ll do an arm bike workout, for cardio,” Laney said. “And just a lift, like upper body lift.”
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