John Jenkins has had enough of the pain.
The Hawks guard missed Thursday night’s game against the Cavaliers with nerve pain in his left leg that could be related to the back problems that have plagued him since the summer.
Jenkins said he, his agent and Hawks management are discussing a plan to get to the bottom of the recurring issue.
“My back is fine,” Jenkins said. “It’s a pain going down my leg. It’s irritating. It’s uncomfortable. I’m dealing with that. I’ll probably get another epidural soon. I’m weighing my options on what I need to do to eliminate this thing forever. It’s been too long. It’s been preventing me from playing the way I need to be playing. I’m trying to play on it, play through it. It’s time to just get it out of the way forever.”
Jenkins missed two months this summer with a back injury. The issue came up again at the start of training camp and forced him to miss all but the final two exhibition games. He was listed Thursday as out with lower back pain.
Jenkins, a first-round pick of the Hawks in 2012, has seen limited action this season. He has appeared in 13 games and has averaged 3.1 points and 1.7 rebounds in 12.1 minutes. He did a four-game stint in the NBA Development League earlier this month.
Jenkins said surgery is an option, but the process of discussing all options has just begun. There is no timetable for a decision.
“It’s always there,” Jenkins said of the leg pain. “It gradually got worse. Last time, it gradually got better as I took medicine and stretched. This time it came up, and it’s getting worse. I knew something was seriously wrong with it. I can’t really play on it. Well, I could, but it would be hurting even more.
“I don’t want to damage it even more where I have to have surgery. The smart thing for me is to sit, see what is really going on with it and get it fixed.
More injury updates: Cartier Martin said he is still experiencing soreness because of his left ankle sprain, but he dressed and was available against the Cavaliers. He has missed the previous three games with the injury suffered in practice. Gustavo Ayon said the left ankle sprain that cost him six games is 100 percent. The forward/center was available, but did not play Monday against the Heat.
All-Star voting: The NBA released a second update of the All-Star balloting Thursday, and no Hawks are among the top vote-getters in the Eastern Conference.
Neither Al Horford nor Paul Millsap are among the top 15 in the frontcourt results. Jeff Teague is not among the top 10 in the backcourt results.
LeBron James leads all players with 854,105 votes.
As the balloting stands now, the Eastern Conference All-Star starters would be James, Paul George (712,808), Carmelo Anthony (580,795), Dwyane Wade (565,455) and Kyrie Irving (524,000).
The All-Star game will be played Feb. 16 in New Orleans.
Williams plays Santa: All Hawks player received gold headphones courtesy of Lou Williams as a Christmas gift. Several were sporting the audio devices, designed by rapper Meek Mill, Thursday.
What inspired Williams to play Santa Claus?
“I just liked them,” Williams said. “A personal friend of my designed them, so I made a phone call to see if we could get 20 pairs and get all the guys some. I don’t know if you are familiar with the headphone craze, but these are the newest and coolest ones that are out. I just wanted to make sure that everyone had a pair.”
