Bonzie Colson’s injury raises questions for what comes next
Bonzie Colson has re-broken his foot in a 73–63 NIT loss to Penn State, signaling a tragic end to one of the greatest careers in Notre Dame basketball lore. Colson, who was already on most NBA draft boards as a second round talent, will now have to recover from a significant injury yet again. It raises questions about his durability, and could see him slipping off of draft boards.
Notre Dame was ranked 5th in the AP Poll on November 30th, which seems like an eternity ago for a team that had such high preseason hopes. The Fighting Irish went 6–9 when Colson broke his foot the first time back in January during practice. This streak included a seven game skid, which drove Notre Dame’s season into the ground. As a dominating force on the court and a commanding presence as a senior leader, to say that Colson’s presence was missed would be a massive understatement.
The question for Colson beyond that is what lies next. An obvious NBA hopeful, Colson now has to rehabilitate a broken foot for the second time in 2018 before scouting season really begins. It remains to be seen just how badly this injury has impacted his stock with NBA teams.
It took 58 days for Colson to return from the injury the first time. From today, there are 57 days until the NBA’s 5 day combine begins. Does Colson want to come back as quickly as before and test himself, hoping to cement his spot on some NBA draft boards? Does he want to take it slow and let his career numbers do the talking, and avoid the risk of re-injury or not performing to the best of his capabilities?
In the end, Colson will get some sort of look from an NBA team, as he is a legitimate threat in both rebounding and scoring. It remains to be seen, however, if that shot will come in the form of being selected in the second round, or will he have to earn a roster spot as an undrafted free agent?
What a shame to end the career of one of college basketball’s best seniors with an injury prone campaign such as this one.
