So, I watched a little of the Suns games in the Vegas league. He moved well enough, but from what I could see, he did not have the explosiveness. I never saw him elevate above everyone else and saw a few folks take it to him. I saw him go for blocks and rebounds without getting above people like Lampe. He certainly didn't dominate. Makes one wonder if the Suns will be better with him starting and if he's not starting, what does that do to the Suns team chemistry? I realize it's still early and he's a hard worker, but one would think a flash or two of the explosiveness would come through by now. Anyone else see him? Thoughts?
I havent seen him play, but I have read about the same thing you mentioned in Steve Kerr column on Yahoo. I think we cant judge him by summer league games. If he indeed lost his hops, he is a different Amare then, not as fearful as the old Amare to the rest of league.
Well obviously you got to start him. He's still a good player, with the ability to stick foul-line jumpers and run the pick and roll effectively. Maybe he can't jump over people anymore, but that doesn't mean he can't still be an effective finisher and good offensive option. He might even be worth that max salary if he gets humble and starts doing the dirty work in crashing the boards and defending with vigor. Although the idea that he's going to be a transcendent, once in a generation, dominator probably isn't going to happen. That explosiveness and fierce aggressiveness was what set him apart from the crowd. And without the ability to explode over people, you got to wonder if an aggressive attitude is enough.
he still might need more time to fully recover. microfracture truly sucks. how many months post-op is he? i thought he had it mid-october last year so that would only put him 9 months post-op. this is going to be a VERY hard year for him. he is going to need another full season before he is 100%.
I don't think ANYBODY has come back 100% from microfracture, so Amare would be the first if he did it. As I understand the results, you can regain much of the straight ahead speed and side to side mobility (some football players that have had this surgery have done it), but in terms of up and down jumping and explosiveness, it hasn't happened yet. Guys like Adrian Griffin who do recover back to being as productive as before, aren't the guys who were explosive to begin with. I wish Amare luck. If he never gets back to the way he was, then the NBA is far poorer for losing such an incredible talent.
Amare's got the best shot of anyone to come back from it, given that it was a small spot on his knee in a non-load-bearing area. However, there's plenty of reason to be worried, starting with the fact that it happened so early in his career. You have microfracture surgery when you've got "bald tires" (spots with no cartilage to absorb shock/allow smooth knee movement). If Amare had one spot that was bare, chances are good that the rest of the knee(s) aren't far behind. That he had problems with his "good" knee in his mini-comeback is a major concern. I hope he recovers and has a great career. You need showstoppers like him and old-school Kemp for the NBA to be the most entertaining league in the world. Evan
I see it quite differently. I saw Amare being capable of running down the court, sprinting just fine, beating other big man down too. In terms of explosiveness, I have to agree. Maybe he's rusty, but he showed signs of a barely above average athlete in terms of explosiveness. He doesn't have that mean demeanor on the court, which I think plays in it. He had that aggressiveness that he was going to stick it in your face, no fear, all contact. However, he can still run.
that wouldn't be half bad, but i'm not counting on it. webber had a good outside shot and great vision, and a decent post game. if the Suns bring him back too fast and Amare doesn't improve his jumpshot, he's gonna become the next Anfernee Hardaway.
He may have had instructions just to take it easy. Why go all out in a summer league anyway unless your trying to earn a job? When Amare came back for those 2 games last season he played quite well for not being 100%. He should be in better shape next year. I think he will have a pretty good year and an absolute monster for the 08-09 season if his knees don't give out on him.
He's gonna have to live up to that #1 jersey in the upcoming season. We'll see. I find it a bit arrogant/distasteful to change his number NOW, considering that he didn't help at all last season, and his future is uncertain. But that's just me.
YES. I noticed it too after watching him. On the positive side, he has definitely improved his outside jumper. sort of ironic. yao is now the power player and amare is finesse???
Amare will probaly never be the athletically dominate player he was before the injury, but I think he'll be able to re-invent himself, he still has good size and he can develop a more traditional post game. Basically a less explosive Amare wouldn't be that off from a normal Tim Duncan if he puts in the time.
I think he's got a better chance of developing his game along the lines of what Brand has done. Having an excellent midrange jumpshot and scoring off of pull-ups, fadeaways, pick and rolls/pop. Amare's game has always been to face up. It would be a whole lot of work to totally re-invent his game to playing back to the basket.
He shot a very good % in those 5 games though. Around 50% at 20 ppg I think. Every play worth his salt shoots 50% in scrub league though. What do Suns fans on message boards think about his chances for recovery? Are they acting like some of our fans who think T-Mac's done? Are they calling for a trade before its tooooo late? It's too bad they still have Diaw. I miss the bad Suns with Marbury. =(
Bingo! You beat me to it. I don't care if Amare can or can not recover to his old self. If age starts to catching up with Steve this season, the Suns are doomed...
