Cue the Gordon Hayward-related medical diagnoses.
The Boston Celtics star revealed Wednesday that he has taken off the walking boot he wore on his surgically repaired leg he injured on the first day of the season, per Chris Forsberg of ESPN.
This could mean nothing, and it could mean anything. Like Forsberg said, there's no guarantee Hayward can walk willy-nilly everywhere from here on out.
But if his foot responds well to regular pressure, that makes this development a major hurdle that Hayward has leaped over in regards to his recovery, and his eventual return to basketball.
There have been recent hints that Hayward was on this path. Just six days ago, it was reported that Hayward would be out of the boot in two weeks. That mean's he's eight days ahead of schedule.
Does that mean Hayward is more likely than not to return to NBA basketball before the end of the season? No one really knows.
But Hayward has been beating the timetable for his return since his surgery. And these days, with how good modern medicine has been getting athletes back to health ahead of schedule, anything is possible.
Boston fans and Hayward himself would benefit from patience with this, though. The last thing he wants is to ramp things up too early and re-injure himself.
But one thing is for sure: Hayward being out of the boot is a good sign for things to come.