Q&A with Tracy McGrady Posted: April 23, 2007 There may be no player under more scrutiny in the first round of the NBA playoffs than Rockets small forward Tracy McGrady, who is making his sixth postseason appearance in 10 seasons in the league. McGrady has been a terrific playoff performer: He comes into this postseason with averages of 29.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 5.8 assists, but his springs have routinely been cut short -- he has never won a playoff series. That could change in the coming days. McGrady is, for a change, playing on a team with home-court advantage in the first round, and the Rockets are favored against the Jazz. In the series opener, McGrady scored 22 of his 23 points in the second half as Houston overcame a 9-point halftime deficit. SN's Sean Deveney caught up with McGrady to talk about trophies, magical back spasm cures and why the scouting report on the Jazz really doesn't matter. SN: I imagine the topic of getting to the second round has come up a lot. Do you get tired of being asked about it? McGRADY: It really hasn't come up that much. I kind of expected it would, but it's not like people are always asking me about it. I don't really need anyone to tell me that. It's a disappointment that I haven't been out of the first round--trust me. SN: Most times, it seems like you have gone into the playoffs as a low seed. Those lower seeds don't win a lot in the playoffs. McGRADY: If you go back and look, you see every time I've been on a team that lost, the other team was just better. No one player on one side is going to beat a better team. People that know basketball, who are real basketball fans, know that in most of those situations you could look at some of those teams and wonder how we even got to the playoffs in the first place. SN: Those were mostly teams in Orlando. There was one in Toronto and one in Houston. McGRADY: Not having Grant Hill for all those times with the Magic really took away from those basketball teams. We got Orlando back into the playoffs, at least. They hadn't been there in a long time, and we got them back. I am happy with that. SN: Do you talk to Grant much? Have you ever looked back with him and talked about what might have been? McGRADY: I really don't speak to him much. There hasn't been the opportunity to talk with him, and I don't know that now would be the time to wonder what could have been. SN: The team you have now, it sounds like you have higher expectations than just being in the playoffs. McGRADY: This is the first time I have been to the playoffs and have been excited about what the team can do. We can accomplish something. We have a great core of players. Not just Yao (Ming) and me, but Shane Battier has been a great addition, Luther Head has been a great shooter, Rafer Alston. We can be dangerous because we have that inside-outside combo. SN: Everybody talks about how the playoffs are different. But for the guys who haven't been through it before, how do you explain to them what's expected? McGRADY: I voice my opinion. I am going to make sure they know, especially with the team we have. Listen, we cannot be happy about making the playoffs. I have to make them understand that we have to advance here. SN: How's your health and, specifically, your back? Have you gotten better at managing your back over 82 games? McGRADY: It's not a matter of that. When I came back in late December, I was fine. In the beginning of the season, I was not healthy. It was hurting, and I was having trouble walking at times. But I went to see this doctor down in Waco, and he completely healed it. SN: He healed your back? Who's the doctor? McGRADY: Dr. John Patterson. He had worked on (Rockets assistant coach) Charlie Ward, and Charlie told me I should go see him. He is the one who worked on Terrell Owens' leg. Andy Roddick saw him. I called Andy, and he said he was great. SN: Must be nice to pick up the phone and get a doctor's recommendation from Andy Roddick. But what did the doctor do? McGRADY: It was weird. It's some kind of biochemistry thing. I was like, "This is not going to work." He told me I would feel better the second I got up. So, I'm thinking, "OK, let's see." I get down on this table, and I am lying there for almost three hours. There are three doctors there, chiropractors and all, and they're all just touching different spots. There was this woman who was wearing gloves, and she had a spray bottle. And she sprayed water on my back and rubbed it in, you know, poking around. I had no idea what she was doing. SN: So now, you're healthy and you're in the playoffs. How does that change your routine? McGRADY: Me, I am the kind of guy who has no big routine. I get into the arena, lie down on the training table and watch TV. SN: How about scouting reports? Here you guys are with the Jazz--how much time do you spend looking at those? McGRADY: I don't spend a minute with scouting reports. Really. I know these guys. They might put in some wrinkles here and there, but I think most players don't read the scouting reports. You don't need a scouting report to know what Utah is going to do from game to game. You know their plays. They're going to pick-and-roll, pick-and-roll and pick-and-roll. SN: At least it's easy to remember. McGRADY: Exactly. Painful exits Tracy McGrady was 20 when he lost his first playoff series with the Raptors. For T-Mac, now 27, each defeat has been a little tougher to accept. 2000 Knicks 3, Raptors 0 16.7 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 3.7 apg "We learned from our mistakes, and definitely, hopefully, we'll be back." --Associated Press 2001 Bucks 3, Magic 1 33.8 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 8.3 apg "I'm very disappointed for all of us, but it's not the end of the world. I think we showed a lot of character, and this was a great year for the franchise." --Florida Today 2002 Hornets 3, Magic 1 30.8 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 5.5 apg "I don't want to be one of those guys who takes six or seven times to get to the next level." --Chicago Daily Herald 2003 Pistons 4, Magic 3 31.7 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 4.7 apg After losing a 3-1 series lead: "It's tough. This was a winnable series for us. It's tough to swallow." --Detroit News 2005 Mavericks 4, Rockets 3 30.7 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 6.7 apg "I'm disgusted. I'm real mad. I'm angry. All that stuff. At the same time, I won't hang my head. I will be back next year. This is all going to make me tougher. I never will fold." --Houston Chronicle --- Wow, look at the magic he has done in the playoffs, I don't know how you can deny his ability. Let's see what he's got for us tonight.
great article thanks... the only problem, or not even that, is that with him thinking its an inside-outside combo, he takes away his powerful and athletic drive to the basket game. Calling inside-outside just limits his ability.
Shaq and Kobe were an inside out combo. The term just refers to where the players initiate their offense, not where they finish.
Great post! Absolute contrast between T-Mac not looking at scouting reports at all and Yao waking up in the middle of the night in a panic about Utah play #43. I'm sure that isn't what JVG would like to hear, T-Mac saying nobody reads the scouting reports. Not everyone has the basketball mind of T-Mac!
Its probably a little differant for Yao because of all the pick and roll he is involved in, having to know who to switch on, when to show, etc. On the other hand, we sort of hide Tmac on defense unless somone is lighting up Battier, so he dosnt have to worry as much and just play his game. Or he's just lazy...
well yao struggles w/ the pick and roll. but b/c he wants to improve, that's what makes him so great. tmac, when focused, is a top 3 defender. there is no defense he has not seen. and no one ever attacks him offensively anyways. and he knows all of JVG's plays since they all involve him.
LOL, was she the cleaning lady? Is the guy a miracle worker, and/or does he use the power of suggestion? "He is a physical therapist and owns Body Mechanics in Waco. After teaching in public school systems for 8 years, he received his masters degree from Midwestern State University and worked as a psychologist for 7 years. He moved to Waco and worked for Texas Rehabilitation Commission as a counselor serving clients with mental and behavioral problems and became interested in physical rehabilitation. John went back to school and became certified in that area. He worked with Baylor athletic department for two years before starting his private practice and has worked with various athletic teams including the Atlanta Falcons. " Best not to question the methods, as long as the "cure" keeps working
Neat comparison to Yao, who reads that thick scouting report, to TMac who uses it to kill bugs. That's not a knock on TMac. He definitely feels the court better than Yao and intuitively knows more things than any scout can write.
