<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">ROME - Amar? Stoudemire does not feel like dancing, but it sure does look like he is doing the salsa lately. Each forward step in his return from two knee surgeries in the past year is followed by a reverse one and vice versa. Stoudemire removed himself from practice Thursday, the second time he has done so in four days. This time, he said both knees bothered him. Just two days after saying he understood he could play through knee discomfort and still improve, Stoudemire lasted as long as warm-ups Thursday in the Suns' first practice in Rome. He was as grim as when he left the USA Basketball camp early this summer in Las Vegas, but he said he feels worse now than he did then. "I'm getting a little pain and it starts from the point of the kneecap and it's still stiff so both of these things are going on," Stoudemire said after reluctant pauses of silence to share why he was down and out again, "and it's carrying over to the left (knee). The left was super. "It's getting worse so we've got to figure something out to make it better. It's not that I'm not putting in the work. I'm working hard. I'm trying to get it strong. Whatever it takes to make it strong, I'm dedicated to it." There still is no swelling or sharp pain in the knees, team physician Thomas Carter said. That is what would concern Carter more. He will put Stoudemire back on anti-inflammatory medication and have him wear a sleeve to stabilize the right kneecap. Carter said there was "no appreciable change" in how the right knee looked on an MRI exam two weeks ago and how it looked in May, a month after Carter operated to remove a cyst and debris from it. "The right knee that we've been concerned about, because of the wear and tear under his kneecap, doesn't have any swelling, which is the guideline we've used," said Carter, noting that Stoudemire is feeling arthritis in the right knee.</div> Source
I hope Stoudemire doesnt become the Grant Hill of the 21st century. Even as a Lakers fan, I still think Steve Nash deserves a ring before he retires and it seems that to get one the Suns are going to need Stoudemire's production. Hopefully he gets better.
I'm not a Suns fan but I must admit that I like watching Amare play, hopefully he doesn't become another Grant Hill, because I really feel that he has the potential to be one of the best PFs ever if he stays healthy.
I think his knee is gone. He doesnt realize that there is gonna be some pain there. Just because your knee is gone doesnt mean he still cant be effective he just losses some of his explosive factor. Alot of players lose their knees early in ther career. magic johnson did. Kevin johnson did. but the were both effective players after they lost their knees.
<div class="quote_poster">michiganave17 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I think his knee is gone. He doesnt realize that there is gonna be some pain there. Just because your knee is gone doesnt mean he still cant be effective he just losses some of his explosive factor. Alot of players lose their knees early in ther career. magic johnson did. Kevin johnson did. but the were both effective players after they lost their knees.</div> The difference is this, explosiveness is the foundation of Amare's game. He needs to except the fact his knee is never going to fully recover and start adjusting his game. Amare will have to learn how to score with his back to the basket, and improve his jumpshot so he can consistently hit from 18 feet and in. The Suns should have never let him try to rush back last season to make the playoffs. I think Amare should sit out the entire first half of the season and continue physical therapy to strengthen the area around his knee and his core (ab area). Forcing the issue is going to lead to more setbacks instead of being patient and giving your body a chance to heal itself.
I'd be angry as Suns fan. These doctors get paid plenty $$$ to do they're job and it baffles me how the guy still feels pain. If that's the case, what's the damn reason for the surgery!!!!
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">I think his knee is gone. He doesnt realize that there is gonna be some pain there. Just because your knee is gone doesnt mean he still cant be effective he just losses some of his explosive factor. Alot of players lose their knees early in ther career. magic johnson did. Kevin johnson did. but the were both effective players after they lost their knees. The difference is this, explosiveness is the foundation of Amare's game. He needs to except the fact his knee is never going to fully recover and start adjusting his game. Amare will have to learn how to score with his back to the basket, and improve his jumpshot so he can consistently hit from 18 feet and in. The Suns should have never let him try to rush back last season to make the playoffs. I think Amare should sit out the entire first half of the season and continue physical therapy to strengthen the area around his knee and his core (ab area). Forcing the issue is going to lead to more setbacks instead of being patient and giving your body a chance to heal itself.</div> As for sitting out the first half of the season- that might be a good idea for Amare but that'll mean that the Suns have been without him for a year and a half. Paid him for nothing. He's honestly more of a cancer in practice than a tool you can utilize, the entire team is having to learn to play with him and without him every other day. You are right about explosiveness being the key to his game though, and it's well documented that he's not great on fundamentals...taking away Amare's explosiveness is like taking Jason Kidd's passing ability, Ray Allens shot, and Shaquille O'Neals 340 pound mass....he's nothing without it. If he doesn't regain at least 75% of his former self, It'll be interesting to see what kind of player he turns into.
<div class="quote_poster">Rock4life Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I'd be angry as Suns fan. These doctors get paid plenty $$$ to do they're job and it baffles me how the guy still feels pain. If that's the case, what's the damn reason for the surgery!!!!</div> You can never predict how you're bodie's going to respond to surgery. Also these athletes tend to rush back and not listen to the advice of the trainers or physicians. I can't blame them, but when you're livelyhood revolves around your health, you have to trust the experts around you.
From watching Amare play in the NBA, I really hope this injury doesn't scar him for the rest of his career like it has with Grant Hill. With Amare back in the Suns' lineup, I think this time will be able to reach the finals, since they have already adjusted to get past the 1st round without Amare. I like Shape's idea of sitting him out for the first half of the season. He's still young and you don't want to make any dumb mistakes that will have an affect in the future like when he played those 3 games last year. But when he does get better, the Suns will be one of the top teams in the NBA.
If I were the Suns organization, I would definitely sit him out for as long as needed for him to fully recover. It doesn't make sense to try to get him back as soon as possible, if its his career thats at stake. They invested money in him, so it would be stupid to try to get him back as soon as possible- probably stunting his career a couple years. The truth is though, the surgery he got really messed up a lot of other careers, most notably Webber and Kidd (I think?). He just needs to learn to take it easy and not to rush anything.
