You should not play basketball with a sprained ankle or with another severe ankle injury. In fact, you should wait to return to the sport until a medical professional has told you that you can.  “It takes at least three to six weeks to heal from a moderate ankle sprain, and up to three to six months for more serious ankle injuries—depending upon what was injured and how severely it was injured,” Dr. Gondek says. Returning to sports too soon could cause your injury to heal even more slowly.