Isiah Thomas' hand/wrist injury timeline:

April 7, 1989 - Isiah Thomas breaks left hand during fight with Chicago's Bill Cartwright. Thomas returned to the lineup on April 12 and played through the 1989 playoffs with slowly healing fractured hand.

January 29, 1991 - Isiah Thomas undergoes surgery on right wrist to fuse three bones he'd injured a year prior. After having his cast removed in late March, Thomas was expected to undergo six to eight weeks of rehabilitation before returning to the lineup. He returned to action on April 5th and played out the rest of the season with a weak and frequently ineffective right hand. Thomas' comments above came prior to Game 2 of his team's first round series with the Atlanta Hawks. While experiencing flashes of brilliance (including a series-closing 26-point, 11-assist performance against Atlanta), Thomas remained significantly hampered until the Pistons were ultimately eliminated by the Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference Finals.

November 16, 1993 - After breaking a rib following a Bill Laimbeer screen in practice on Oct. 30, Thomas broke his hand punching Laimbeer in the face on another questionable screen in practice two weeks later. Thomas returned to action on December 2nd, scoring 26 points and handing out 13 assists in a one point loss to the Suns. Laimbeer's remorse over the incident was rumored to have played a contributing factor in his decision to retire early into the 1993-94 regular season.

1989 Broken Hand: https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/c...

1991 Wrist Surgery: https://www.washingtonpost.com/archiv...

1993 Broken Hand: https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-x...