NBA concussion protocol explained

Kevin Love’s concussion could leave him out for Game Three. How quickly he returns depends on how quickly he advances through the concussion protocols.

Kevin Love was preparing to go up for a rebound in the second quarter of Sunday’s Game Two of the NBA Finals. It was something he has done a million times. His back turned to the play behind him, his head cocked up to look in the board to his hands.

Harrison Barnes was doing something natural too. He was swooping in from the wing to collect the rebound himself, hoping to outleap Love for the board. He began his jump and did outleap Love for the board.

His elbow though nailed Love in the back of the head and sent Love sprawling to ground as the play continued — Draymond Green had to avoid him on an and-one layup as Love stayed laying prone on the floor. He was examined then and showed no signs of a concussion, Cavs trainers told Brian Windhorst  of ESPN.com.

Love came back out after halftime, but quickly left the game in the third quarter complaining of dizziness. Trainers again examined Love and determined he was displaying symptoms of a concussion.

The official diagnosis came for Love during the game. He was out for the rest of the game with a concussion and would enter the NBA’s concussion protocols. His status for Game Three is still very much up in the air.

So what are the concussion protocols and how quickly can Love proceed through them to play Wednesday?

That is the part that is very uncertain. Getting cleared to play is not something that has a set timeline. It depends on how the player responds to a series of increasingly difficult and strenuous tests. How and when those tests occur can be dependent on how the player feels and progress.

The NBA instituted the concussion protocols in 2011 ahead of the 2011-12 season because of the rise in awareness about concussions and the NBA’s desire to stay in front and protect its players. It was a simple policy and one that continues to evolve.

The basic process though has not changed.

Before the season, every player undergoes basic neurological and cognitive testing. This serves as the baseline tests for future testing in the concussion protocol.

After the diagnosis of a concussion, the player is removed from the game immediately and monitored to ensure his safety and to abate symptoms as best as the team and player can.

Following 24 hours, the player may then begin the return-to-play process, provided they have not shown any symptoms. The player must then complete a series of exercises of increasing difficulty and display that he is at his baseline testing and without concussion symptoms after each test.

First the player must complete a workout on a stationary bike, then jogging, then agility drills, then non-contact team drills. After completing each step, the player will undergo testing and must not present any concussion symptoms to advance to the next activity.

If the player displays concussion symptoms at any point, his activity is shut down until he is symptom free and then the process starts again with the last completed activity.

It is possible for a player to complete more than one activity in a day. The speed at which a player moves through the concussion protocol is wholly dependent on the symptoms, the baseline test and how a player feels. Thus there is no timetable for a return.

After completing the concussion protocol activities, the team physician consults with the director of the NBA Concussion Program, Dr. Jeffrey Kutcher, before clearing the player to play. The final decision is up to the team physician to clear the player to play.

Again, there is no timetable for this all to happen. It can occur very quickly or take several weeks. It depends on the symptoms presented.

Love would be eligible to begin the back-to-play activities — beginning with riding a stationary bike — late Monday or Tuesday. The team is reportedly flying back to Cleveland on Monday morning.

That certainly leaves his status for Wednesday’s Game Three up in the air. But it is also very possible, if his symptoms have subsided, that he could quickly move through the concussion protocols and be ready to play by Friday’s Game Four.

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