Ahead of the UConn Coaches Road Show in Stratford on Tuesday, Geno Auriemma provided the latest updates on his team’s injured players. Dorka Juhász (wrist) and Caroline Ducharme (hip) are still a long way off, while Aubrey Griffin (back) could return to basketball activities this summer.
“This time of year, it’s (about) do your rehab, be a little better today than you were yesterday,” Auriemma said. “There’s no actual basketball involved so it’s just taking care of their bodies. Right now, you don’t really mess with them too much. You just let them do their thing.”
Griffin missed the entire 2021-22 campaign with myriad injuries and eventually underwent season-ending back surgery on Jan. 11 to repair a disc injury. At the time of the operation, her recovery timetable was put at four months. To this point, Griffin is still slowly working her way back.
“Aubrey’s doing a little bit of this and a little bit of that but not a lot of anything,” Auriemma said.
The hope is that Griffin will participate in summer workouts at some point.
“For Aubrey, it’s been forever (since she played),” the coach said. “So hopefully, sometime this summer we’ll see something (from her).”
The same can’t be said for Juhász and Ducharme. Juhász’s first season in Storrs came to a sudden end when she fractured and dislocated her left wrist in the team’s Elite Eight win over NC State. She underwent surgery on March 30 and has a recovery time of four months. According to Auriemma, Juhász still has a cast on her wrist.
As for Ducharme, she went under the knife on April 29 to fix an unspecified left hip injury. According to the school, the injury predates the rising sophomore’s time at UConn.
Both players will be sidelined until at least August, according to Auriemma.
“For Caroline, it’s at least until August. With Dorka, it’s probably very similar,” he said. “They’re really the ones that are long-term. So no rush. Nobody’s in a hurry to get back for a game.”
Meanwhile, Paige Bueckers should finally be fully healthy after missing 19 games last season with a tibial plateau fracture and torn meniscus.
“Paige is good,” Auriemma said. “She ended up being able to go home for a while.”
The Huskies will return to campus on June 1 for the start of summer workouts, though it’ll be a little longer until freshman Ice Brady arrives, though. Auriemma said she’ll miss “our first 10 days maybe” while away with USA Basketball.
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