http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/4432126.html<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Back treatment has McGrady feeling goodProblems have been corrected, says rehab specialistBy JONATHAN FEIGENCopyright 2006 Houston ChronicleTracy McGrady flashed his best pump fake, and with it, juked New Jersey Nets forward Richard Jefferson off his feet.McGrady gathered himself to launch a shot when Jefferson, off-balance and with nowhere to land, crashed hard into McGrady's back and side.Barely more than one game into his return from back spasms, McGrady made his way toward the scorer's table, moving as carefully as if walking on spikes. He hunched over the table, held his lower back and for a few familiar moments, did not move.Then McGrady was hit with something more surprising than a crashing opponent. He realized he was all right."It's all mental," he said. "When I take a hard hit like that, I assume something bad is going to come out of it. I was just taking my time, making sure everything was OK. When I walked away, it was OK. It was a pretty hard hit, though."It also was the clearest sign McGrady had at least recovered from his latest episode of back spasms. But perhaps the better news is McGrady's rehabilitation specialist, John Patterson, said that barring a violent collision, McGrady's latest back spasms incident will be his last.<span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:100%">"He should function very well for the rest of his life," Patterson said.</span>Patterson worked on McGrady for about 2 1/2 hours last Friday, with McGrady reporting he felt much better as soon as he got up from the table and ever since."Tracy was probably the most pessimistic person I've worked on in a long time," Patterson said. "We've done it for 30 years. He said, 'When will I feel the difference?' I said, 'When you get off the table.' "Rockets assistant coach Charlie Ward recommended Patterson to McGrady. McGrady then called tennis player Andy Roddick, who had a similar condition."What we did is make sure what caused the back to go out in the first place," Patterson said. "Once we located that, we used passive resistance I call 'synergy release therapy.' Basically, it's looking for what caused the soft tissues or muscles to retract and correct that."Patterson said the technology, a frequency specific microcurrent machine, was developed in 1996 by Carol McMahon in Vancouver, Wash. Since then, Patterson has used it on many athletes, including Atlanta Braves pitcher John Smoltz, Dallas Cowboys receiver Terrell Owens, Olympians Michael Johnson, Gail Devers and Butch Reynolds and Roddick."My main point is to rehab them so they don't get hurt again the same way," Patterson said. "And then, it's to prevent another injury because biomechanics are not right. It's basically a combination of biomechanics and a microcurrent machine. Between the two, you can make it heal faster and prevent it from happening again."McGrady's most recent episodes, including the Dec. 9 spasms in Washington that forced him to miss seven games before returning Tuesday, were not caused by collisions but by awkward twists of his back."I haven't had any flare-ups," McGrady said. "We'll see, but as of now, I feel good. It's really painful when it happens."To be able to not wake up in the morning and wake straight is tough. And I have two kids. They're of the age I want to pick them up, toss them in the air and play with them. I don't want to be limited at 27 years old."McGrady had begun to lose hope that he would be back this month."The treatment I got to get back so quick, I can't even explain it," McGrady said. "It was like he popped my knee back in place. Even my feet ? I'm flat-footed, very flat-footed ? they were doing this on my foot. After a while, they saw an arch on my foot."I had a little attitude about it, thinking it was not going to work. When I went to the office, I was still sore. I was still crooked a little bit."Every time I sit down for a while, it takes me awhile to straighten up. They worked on me for about 2 1/2 hours. I popped off that table and stood straight up."It worked. I thought I'd be out another month or so."This is what I love to do. I hate being out. I hate being injured and sitting back watching my guys go out every night competing without me."Now, Patterson said, he won't have to.McGrady is beginning to believe him.</div>
