that we make it one week w/o an injury scare? I know this is broken record city here, but what else can you say? It's just one after another. 30 years as a sports fan, and I don't remember seeing anything like these last few years. I wonder how many MRI's the Blazers have done this season, and (if they kept that kind of stat) would it lead the league? That would be where the smart money's at. Now Nic could be out? This is just ridiculous. It's so stressful to get home late from work, look at the box score, bummer we lost . . . what, Nic only played 14 minutes? and Babbitt played 9! next thought - oh no, Nic's hurt. So tell me guys, how bad was the injury? I guess I'm a glutton for punishment.
If the team isn't looking at the medical staff by now then idk what it will take. Eventually it gets to the point where it's not a coincidence anymore that everyone is getting hurt, or that there is a curse. This team has had 4 MF surgeries in the last 6 or so years. One for ZBO, one for Miles and two for Oden. There is something wrong with that. Add that to the fact there have been a million other injuries and imo this isn't just a coincidence anymore.
Steve Blake hurting shoulder, comes back too early, hurts it again Same thing with Nic Webster stress fracture, out half the season, after 5min he's done for the rest of the season Outlaw stress fracture Rudy's back There's definitely more but the point stands. It's basically at the point for me where it's not a coincidence anymore. When it keeps happening over and over, spanning over seasons it's just not a coincidence anymore imo.
The starting 5 next year should be: PG - Armon Johnson SG - 2nd round pick SF - Babbit PF - Pendergraph C - Marks Get the injuries out of the way by January, and let the starters win some games!
That would actually be wonderfully entertaining. I wonder how many games Nate could win with that group?
It won't be Miami. I can almost guarantee that Riles will be back on the sidelines for that one. Maybe LA, but that would depend on Kobe. I don't think Charlotte would appeal that much to him. They're not really that much better than us.. if at all.
You really believe the medical staff has something to do with our injuries? I saw Batum bang knees with Rondo last night, and there wasn't a Blazer trainer within 50 feet of him. The Blazer injuries are either just bad luck, or we're drafting players with fragile knees. P.S. If it's a "curse," as you suggest, then changing the medical staff wouldn't help, would it?
It may not be the medical staff and I tend to think that they aren't doing anything that is somehow counter to standards and practices or conventional wisdom amongst the medical community. But I would still perform a rigorous audit of my training and conditioning staff and all of the methods and practices that they utilize. Frankly I'm more inclined to think part of the team's woes can be traced back to KP loading the roster with guys who have had spotty medical histories -- choosing to gamble on health in an effort to get a hold of players with a lot of talent but maybe some question marks about their durability. If Roy hadn't been on Boston's "do not draft" list he probably never would have been available in trade in the first place and we'd be lamenting the struggles of Randy Foye.
Why shouldn't I speculate? This is spanning over years now, not just a singular season. There are way too many injuries. It's that simple. On another note, 1080thefan is going to have a special guest on at 5 to talk about the injury problems with the Blazers. His name is Gary Gray and from what they said this guy is about as good as it gets...and that includes internationally. They already gave a little insight into what Neal has said before to them and that he has watched Roy on tape and he came to the conclusion the way Roy runs puts undue pressure on his knees. Basically his mechanics are not right. I'll be tuning in at 5. It should be a very interesting interview.
All this rhetoric about "the root" of the injuries woes this team has had are bogus to me. People want to believe there is some underlying reason or explanation, because the reality that we've just been horribly unfortunate just seems so unfair. Does assigning blame for all of this take some of the sting out people? In a vacuum, it begs the question "What is the reason?". But whether you want to believe that Nate practices the team too hard, the training staff is incompetent, there's something wrong with the RG hardwood, the cold/damp climate of the Pac NW . . . it just doesn't hold up when you break each injury down case by case. Just for example, Greg Oden. Greg hadn't even been to his first training camp when he hurt his knee the first time. Brandon Roy had knee problems going all the way back to high school. Joel Pryz. had had several seasons of dealing with injuries, especially early in his career with Milwaukee. Same for Marcus Camby. And then there's been some random things like Rudy's Back last year, or Nic's Shoulder. If there is anything you can point the finger at, it's like Nic said - it's the gamble that was taken when the roster was assembled with guys that had a history of medical issues. But it's not just that. It's that plus the fact that this team has been horribly unfortunate. There are a lot of teams that take flyers on players with a checkered medical past that fare differently. Dujuan Blair wasn't supposed to have an ACL in either knee when he was drafted, but hasn't missed a single game in a year and half so far for SA.
You're certainly entitled to your opinion. IMO, there have been too many injuries at this point for me to believe it's all just a coincidence. I don't think that's a crazy stance to take.
