Nets' Nic Claxton says his injury is high left ankle sprain

Nic Claxton knew something was wrong when he landed weirdly in the third quarter of the season-opener. He didn’t come down on someone’s foot but he felt the pain in his ankle.

Claxton hasn’t played since then. Just before the Nets faced the Celtics at Barclays Center on Saturday night, he said for the first time that he’s dealing with a high left ankle sprain.

The Nets and coach Jacque Vaughn previously have said Claxton has a sprained ankle without diagnosing the severity of it. Vaughn reiterated Saturday that Claxton remains “day-to-day.”

“It’s my first time; it’s not fun. It’s pain tolerance,” Claxton said at his locker. “It’s being good just mentally. “You don’t want to go out there and put yourself in a bad position especially so early in the season. So I’m just taking it day-by-day.”

Claxton has missed five games but hasn’t worn a walking boot since Tuesday. As he spoke, he kept his left foot atop his right foot to minimize pressure.

He was icing his ankle before Friday’s game and that’s been the extent of his treatment besides physical therapy. He’s done some limited on-court work to get his confidence back but Vaughn said Friday he didn’t participate in shootaround.

Without a clear timeline for his return, Claxton said he’s learning to be patient. He’s loved seeing how the team has spaced the floor well and rebounded in his absence. He’s admired Dorian Finney-Smith playing small-ball center and called him the catalyst for the team’s three-game win streak entering Saturday.

It made Claxton eager to get healthy but he didn’t want to rush back since it’s early in the season.

“It’s frustrating but it’s an 82-game season so what can you do? I’m not going to put myself in harm’s way.”

By Evan Barnes

evan.barnes@newsday.comevan_b

Evan Barnes covers the Giants for Newsday. He previously covered the Brooklyn Nets, Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.