Wichita State Basketball: Landry Shamet to undergo surgery on foot
On July 29th, news broke that Wichita State basketball’s star guard Landry Shamet broke his right foot and would need to undergo surgery.
One of the best guards in all of college basketball, Wichita State’s Landry Shamet received some tough news over the weekend. While playing at the Under Armour All-America Camp in Philadelphia on July 21st, he had his right foot stepped on and suffered an injury. After medical tests, it has been found that Shamet has suffered a stress fracture in his right foot. This injury holds a recovery time that typically ranges between three and four months.
Last season, Shamet averaged 11.4 points and 3.3 assists per game on 47.2% from the field. He also shot 43.9% from three-point land on 164 total attempts over the season. He was an instrumental part of the 31-win season that Wichita State had in 2016-17. His late-game heroics were almost enough to knock off Kentucky in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
This stress fracture is not the first injury of Shamet’s collegiate career. In fact, he suffered a stress fracture in his left foot during the beginning of his freshman season, which he ended up redshirting due to the injury.
With 3-4 months of recovery this time around, it is possible that Shamet misses the beginning of the 2017-18 season. The Shockers open non-conference play on November 10th against UMKC. Obviously, the goal is that Shamet will be healthy by then, but if he is not, then having him ready to go for the Maui Jim Maui Invitational, which starts on November 20th (WSU faces California in the opening round), will likely be the next biggest priority.
Wichita State is expected to have a huge season in 2017-18, and they will likely enter the year as a preseason top-10 team in the country. Shamet will be a large part of their success, but it is important to remember that the Shockers are a very balanced basketball team. Markis McDuffie, Conner Frankamp, Shaquille Morris, and Darral Willis Jr. all return in addition to several others for head coach Gregg Marshall.
CBS Sports spoke with Shamet about the injury and the star had this to say:
"“I think, honestly, the biggest difference with now and two years ago when I had this situation is the fact I know I’m going to play an entire season and not miss anything,” Shamet said. “So my spirits are a lot higher. I’m mature enough and old enough to know this is a good career decision, and I have to be patient again. It’s a good situation and it’s not one that should be looked at negatively. My left foot feels so good after surgery, it’s like a brand new foot. I’m excited to be at my peak level of athleticism and not have to worry about more issues.”"
Next: Landry Shamet: A star ready to shine
In the end, this is a tough blow for Wichita State, even though it is still the offseason. Shamet will be a vital part of the Shockers’ success for this upcoming season and having him healthy as soon as possible will be very important over the next few months. The non-conference slate is still several months away, but making sure Shamet makes a successful return to health is important not only for the non-conference schedule, but for Wichita State’s initial season in the AAC.