Martin unsure whether he’ll return this season By Marc J. Spears, Yahoo! Sports Along with wondering if coach George Karl will return for the playoffs, the slumping Denver Nuggets have one other pressing concern: Will Kenyon Martin(notes) take the court again this season? Even as he continues to strengthen his injured left knee with hopes of returning, Martin has also accepted he may have already played his final game. He described his chances of playing in any of the Nuggets’ remaining seven regular-season games as “dim.” The Nuggets have struggled without Kenyon Martin's rebounding and defense in their lineup. (NBAE/ Getty Images) Martin missed his 14th consecutive game Monday when the Dallas Mavericks beat the Nuggets 109-93. He has been undergoing platelet-rich plasma therapy, which involves injecting his blood into his knee to help spur tendon recovery. While Martin says his knee feels better, he so far has been limited to riding a bicycle. He just began lifting weights on Monday and doesn’t know when doctors plan to ramp up his rehabilitation program. Related CoverageSlam-dunk apps for iPhone More From Marc J. SpearsFor Yao, patience has become a necessity Mar 29, 2010 As Stoudemire's game grows, so does his cost Mar 26, 2010 ADVERTISEMENT “Realistically, I might not be able to play this year. …I might not be able to play the rest of the year,” Martin told Yahoo! Sports. “That’s what I’m realistic about, that I might not be able to. It’s still up in the air. But, I’m going to do all I can to make sure. I’m going to put my best foot forward and work hard every day to make sure I get back, but if it’s not meant to be, then it’s out of my control. “Nobody will ever be upset that I didn’t try. They will never be able to say that. I’ve fought through stuff worse than that.” Sources told Yahoo! Sports the Nuggets’ medical staff diagnosed Martin with a partial tear of his left patella tendon on March 5, with surgery among the possible treatment options. The Nuggets have publicly referred to the injury as “patella tendonitis” and Martin’s personal doctor, Richard Steadman, recommended the PRP treatments. “They said the treatment doesn’t work on everybody,” Martin said. “I’m just waiting. The pain isn’t the same, but the only thing I have been doing is riding the bike. I haven’t done any running. I haven’t done any jumping, haven’t done much of anything to judge it on right now. I’m still optimistic I’m coming back, but I’m also cautious, worried. My pain level has definitely decreased, but it doesn’t mean anything because I’m not playing basketball. That’s what I had to do to judge it on. “I’m just following [his doctor’s] orders to a ‘T.’ I trust [Nuggets strength and conditioning coach Steve] Hess, and they are talking to Hess daily. …But what’s better? Am I going to be out there playing in pain? If I come back and that’s the case again then I will go see Steadman again and see what he has to say.” The Nuggets are 10-10 this season without Martin, who averages 11.8 points, a team-high 9.6 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 1.05 blocks. Unproven center Johan Petro(notes) has started in Martin’s place. The drop-off has been noticeable. Despite battling knee problems for much of his career, Martin still remains one of the league’s top defenders at the forward position. He’s versatile enough to guard either Pau Gasol(notes) or Kobe Bryant(notes) and is usually assigned to Dirk Nowitzki(notes) when the Nuggets play the Mavericks. Not having to contend with Martin on Monday, Nowitzki totaled 34 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in the Mavericks’ victory. “A lot of what I do is not going to show up on that stat sheet,” Martin said. “That’s what everyone says: ‘It’s not about the [scoring] numbers, it’s the intangibles that you bring. [New York Knicks coach Mike] D’Antoni was asked what is the one thing [the Nuggets] need to do. He said, ‘First of all, bring Kenyon back.’ ” Nuggets guard Chauncey Billups said the team has known it’s a possibility that Martin might not return. “We don’t know what will happen,” Billups said. “But if it is true, it’s a tough pill to swallow losing one of our captains.” Martin feels pressure to help the Nuggets try to secure the Western Conference’s No. 2 seed, which would give them home-court advantage in the first two rounds. If Nuggets don’t pick up their play, Martin thinks they could even fall as far as the eight seed. “Me and Chauncey [Billups] have been saying all along that it’s about consistency,” Martin said. “We’re not playing the same way every night. One night we pass the ball, one night we don’t. One night we defend the ball, one night we don’t. We don’t play the same way every night. Ain’t no way we should lose to Milwaukee twice in a season, man, especially at home, and then going to lose to the Knicks. We can’t do that, man.” Kenyon Martin says the Nuggets have missed having George Karl's experience on the sideline. (NBAE/ Getty Images) Martin has previously had microfracture surgery on both his knees and also suffered a broken leg his senior year in college at Cincinnati. In deciding when to return, he says he has to be intelligent, cautious and a little selfish. Martin, 32, also will be a free agent after the 2010-11 season and still hopes to continue playing. If anything, however, his long injury history has given him some confidence that he’ll also be able to successfully return from his latest setback. “If I don’t come back, it’s tough,” Martin said. “Who is to say we advance? But I just have to make the right decision for me. I definitely don’t want us to lose and suffer. But I have to look at it and say, ‘What’s best for Kenyon?’ I’m competitive as they come. For me not to be out there, especially if it’s the worse-case scenario where I’m not in the playoffs… “I haven’t ruled out [returning]. …But I got to be a realist at the same time knowing the situation and knowing what I’ve known before about rushing back. If I rush back this left knee, than the next night I’m in the same boat with the other knee from overcompensating, and all that.” The Nuggets also are uncertain when – or if – Karl will return. He is undergoing treatment for lung cancer and recently had to be treated for blood clots in his legs and lungs. The Nuggets aren’t planning on Karl being back before the playoffs and sources close to the team say it looks more and more doubtful whether he’ll return at all. Adrian Dantley has replaced Karl as the interim coach, during which time the Nuggets have gone 6-6. “We have to do all we can to eliminate the stress off of him by playing the right way,” Martin said of Karl. “He’s at home watching these games going through it. I know I’m going through it and I’m right here. He hasn’t been able to talk to guys every day because of his voice. I know it’s killing him. “We’re missing him being on the bench, just his voice and his knowledge, how to approach situations and things like that. …Guys are trying to hold it down for the most part, but it’s not on the coaches. It’s on us. We got to go out and police ourselves and play the right way. That’s what it boils down to. It’s definitely not on the coaching staff. They can draw all the ‘X’s and ‘O’s they want. It doesn’t matter when you step on that wood. It’s about effort. It’s about how you play. If we had someone that’s a former head coach, I think that would have been better. The situation would have been better, not to take nothing from [Dantley]. I think he’s doing a heck of a job. That would have been ideal, but that’s not the hand that was dealt. “We have to deal with what we got, and hope George gets back.” Karl isn’t the only person the Nuggets need back. With yet another loss as evidence, they need Martin, too. Marc Spears is an NBA writer for Yahoo! Sports. Send Marc a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast. http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/nba/news...ug=mc-martinnuggets033010&prov=yhoo&type=lgns Doesn't Kmart have the same type of injury that Blake Griffin has?
