It's perfectly normal for players to suddenly minimize physicality after enduring a major injury. But even with a horrible-looking injury last year, Boston Celtics All-Star forward Gordon Hayward still embraces physicality as he looks to regain his mental confidence on the court.

Mass Live's Tom Westerholm sat down with Hayward as he talked about how he approaches physicality, including a recent play that saw him awkwardly fall to the floor in a game against the Charlotte Hornets.

“There was definitely an initial moment, for sure,” Hayward said on Tuesday, after the Celtics practiced back in Boston. “I remember I went up and I thought I was coming down hard. Thankfully they caught me. Somebody caught me.”

It's tough to come back truly fully recovered after a big injury. Shaun Livingston, who suffered a gruesome knee injury in 2007, turned into a jump-shooting combo guard and never returned to the explosive athlete he was before that unfortunate night. There's also Brandon Roy, Tracy McGrady, and Grant Hill. The list just goes on and on.

Even so, Gordon Hayward believes that going through the physical aspect of the game will do him more good than harm.

“I need to have those plays happen just for my mental confidence that it's all going to be okay,” Hayward said. “I need to be hit. I need to go in there and bang around.”

While it is certainly a solid mindset going forward, one could assume that Gordon Hayward is not pushing too hard with his comeback this season. Becoming more of a facilitator than a scorer, Hayward is attempting just nine shots per game, his lowest since his second year in the league.