This sucks because we don't even know if Rice will be damaged goods either. Now that Mo may be down for a while, maybe Griffin will be in the starting lineup.
This is bad news. If Mo is out till all star break then I think Houstons chances of playoffs are very slim.
Dallas (Doc)Rocket here making a Clutch City house call. I'm an orthopedic surgeon: If he has torn the Achilles tendon it will require surgery, probably as soon as possible. Recovery time will be at least 6 months, and probably closer to 9 depending on a number of factors (among them, how he specifically tore the tendon and the type of repair). Long term outlook is reasonably good but it will probably take him at least a year or more of rehab to get back his strength, flexibility, and regain his stop and go and jumping abilities. This is in addition to what he will lose just from being away from the game for that long. All that being said, most would prefer an Achilles tear to an ACL tear. Long term outlook is good and it doesn't involve a major joint. Too often other injuries are coupled with ACL injuries such as cartilage (meniscus) tears and collateral ligament injuries. As I recall, Dominique Wilkins had this injury very late in his career and made a pretty good recovery. Will be interested in additional specific information from the team physicians.
oeilpere, With Mo out for 6 months (at least), will Kenny be starting at PF with Eddie getting the backup minutes, or would Rudy be willing to toss Griffin in to the fire this early at PF? Starting 6'7" Kenny Thomas against the likes of Rasheed Wallace, Chris Webber, Tim Duncan, and Kevin Garnett is not a pleasant thought.
Oeilpere, Please see my post. Let's wait for details re. the specific injury and see if we can decipher what is said publicly. ps-you can be my first assistant any time
Kenny is 6'8, according to many listings except the Chronicle. Really, from my view at several angles at games, the difference in size between Kenny and Mo is the same as the difference in size between Mo and Bullard, ie, a one inch difference. Kenny is 6'8 if Bullard is 6'10. He plays better D than Mo' anyhow. We will lose offense with Kenny, but he won't get slaughtered on D.
RL, I think Opey (and Dal Roc) just said is it is too early to tell and that it could be any of three diagnosis, which themselves vary in recovery time. For now I think we just wait and see what the official reports are. I would think it will take at least a few days of tests before Mo's situation is fully known, and then we can speculate if his situation will impact our offseason moves. For now there isn't much to do but be patient.
ESPN That is where I got my info. It may be wrong, but from what I have seen, there is a bigger difference than 1 inch between Mo and Kenny. We will see. I don't necessarily think it would be awful to start Kenny. Certainly he has earned it with his hard work and no complaining attitude when Mo Taylor showed up after Barkley left. I was more interested in whether or not we would be seeing a little more Eddie at PF this season, or a lot more.
NBA.COM has it different. Oh well. Anyhow, my point is that when Kenny, Mo and Bullard are standing side by side, Mo is only one inch taller than Kenny because Bullard looks to have the same size advantage to Mo and Mo has on Kenny.
610 just said: Torn Achilles tendon. All they're waiting for is confirmation from the Rockets doctors. If they get the confirmation, Mo will have surgery tomorrow morning. They also said Mo is likely out for the season.
Kenny and Mo are virtually the same size. The Kenny is "shorter than listed" claim is a complete myth, likely stemming from the fact he's a wide body. Wow, this does suck though. More pressure on Rice and Griffin to be factors. Mo was a player who needed to be force fed the ball to be effective though, and Kenny really does fit in better in relation to what he brings to the team. Still....this sucks. And I don't think a story like this would leak unless the injury was pretty serious.
CD released this statement: <I>"Houston Rockets forward Maurice Taylor has injured his right Achilles tendon while working out in Detroit. He has been evaluated by doctors in Michigan, who believe he has torn his right Achilles tendon. He will be re-evaluated by our team physicians upon his arrival to Houston and, if he has torn his Achilles tendon, surgery will be performed tomorrow."</I>
DAMN! All our big men have been on some long injury vacations. Hakeem, Charles, Cato, now MO! DAMN! Cato'd better do something this offseason to get ready. Oh ... wait ... wouldn't he get injured playing a pick-up game? Oh! My God!
Remember -- Mo sat out the last 2-3 weeks of last season with a <B>strained right Achilles' tendon</B> (thanks to Dallas Rocket for reminding me). http://www.clutchcity.net/news.cfm?NewsID=652 I hope the Rockets did thorough examinations of that injury before handing over 50 million bones....
This is a really bad news for the Rockets. We've already lacked front court presence, and now with Mo Taylor down, we can only count on K. Thomas and Griffin, and hopefully Cato. Now what I'm really concerned is, if Mo Taylor comes back from injury. Will he still be as good as the same person we saw at the end of last season?
Poor, poor Mo. This season is so over. I'll be leaving after the last game of the season, because there is no way this team is going to the playoffs. What a disappointment. Hopefully the Rockets will put Griffin in at the four. Watching Francis develop was the only thing that got me through 99-00, watching Eddie improve may help ease the pain of this doomed season.
