DJ Wagner receiving plenty of treatment, says ankle is 'getting better day by day.'

Freshman guard DJ Wagner initially injured his ankle all the way back in November. It happened during the first half of Kentucky’s win over Miami (FL). Wagner landed awkwardly on his left ankle after being fouled on a drive to the rim, limped to the free throw line (and even hit one), before heading straight to the locker room.

Wagner would miss the Wildcats’ following game, a shocking loss at home to UNC-Wilmington, before returning the next time out against Penn. John Calipari said Wagner’s ankle was “black and blue” in the leadup to Kentucky’s win over Penn on Dec. 9, but it wasn’t bad enough to keep him out. Wagner played 30 minutes while posting nine points and seven rebounds against the Quakers.

Over the next several weeks, Wagner continued to play. He averaged 30 minutes per game over Kentucky’s next 10 contests. That is until Jan. 31 against Florida when Wagner was ruled out by Calipari just hours before tipoff. Calipari cited the same ankle injury as the reason for keeping his starting point guard sidelined. Wagner then sat out the next three games for UK before returning once again against Gonzaga on Feb. 10.

Since coming back, Wagner has played in both games, but only saw 13 and 18 minutes of clock against Gonzaga and Ole Miss, respectively. He even came off the bench against the Bulldogs. There appears to be more caution this time around. Wagner says his ankle is gradually feeling better.

“It’s been good,” Wagner told reporters on Friday. “I’ve been getting as much treatment as possible, so it’s been good. After every game, after practice and stuff, I make sure I try to get as much treatment as I can. It’s been feeling good.”

Wagner added that the ankle issue is “reoccurring” and confirmed he sprained it back in November. He’s been living in the training room ever since, focusing primarily on stretching and icing. Slowly but surely, he’s getting back to full strength.

“It just feels good to be able to be back out there, just to be able to play again,” Wagner continued. “Like I said, I just been getting a lot of treatment, just trying to strengthen it up as much as possible. It’s been getting better day by day. I feel like it’s feeling pretty good.”

Even when he was off the floor and had to watch from the bench, Wagner still found ways to coach up and cheer on his teammates. He said it helped him process the game in a different way — identifying small things he wouldn’t normally see while in the midst of the action. You probably saw Wagner acting as a secondary coach on the UK bench during games.

For Kentucky to achieve its ultimate goals in March, they’ll need a fully healthy DJ Wagner. He’s on the path to getting there. He’ll take the court again on Saturday when Kentucky hits the road to face No. 13 Auburn.

Subscribe to the KSR YouTube Channel for press conferences, interviews, original shows, fan features, and exclusive content.