Source: https://www.tsn.ca/nba/article/raptors-poeltl-hopes-to-put-back-injury-behind-him/

After last season became a lost season for Jakob Poeltl, any discussion about the veteran centre turns into an indictment of his contract. There are at least three years and more than $80 million of guaranteed salary left on an extension he signed in the summer of 2025. Neither the player nor the deal have aged well.

A nagging back injury limited the 30-year-old to 46 games last season. It’s an ailment he’s been dealing with for a year and may have to manage, to some degree or another, for the rest of his career.

Coming off a disappointing campaign, it’s easy to forget that the version of Poeltl the Raptors drafted in 2016, traded for Leonard in 2018, re-acquired and re-signed in 2023, and then extended in 2025 was a quality starting NBA centre. The numbers don’t do him justice, though 12.7 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks on 64 per cent shooting in two and a half years with Toronto prior to last season are nothing to scoff at.

For what it’s worth, Poeltl isn’t lacking for motivation either. He spent most of the off-season in his native Austria, where he hired and worked with a strength and conditioning coach that specializes in helping athletes bounce back from injury. In consultation with the Raptors’ medical staff, they made some changes to Poeltl’s training routine and crafted a program specifically designed to manage his reoccurring back pain.

Previously, Poeltl would warm up before his basketball workouts and do a standard lift routine afterwards. With the new regimen, he’s doing a full activation and targeted lift session before picking up a ball. There’s an emphasis on mobility, trying to take some pressure off his back by making him more mobile in areas where his range of motion was lacking. In the weight room, the focus is on improving his core strength, as well as targeting his glutes and hamstrings, to make sure he has as much protection as possible.

So far so good. He’s feeling better and, by all accounts, he’s moving better, but he knows the real test is weeks and months away. Keeping up with the new routine and maintaining his health and conditioning over the course of a full season will get monotonous, without any guarantee that it will work – back injuries are famously unpredictable and don’t tend to age well in seven-footers over 30.