Tmac Benched (UPDATE - his lower back stiffened up on him)

man some of y'all just don't know jack. a sore back is NOT the same thing as a sore finger, sore knee, or sore thigh.

do u know what the back comprises of? my god. ppl think sore backs are like leg cramps.

 

We're not at a "critical juncture", we're locked into the fifth seed and there is no chance of overtaking Utah for the home court after we lost to them at home; that was our ONLY chance to make a push for it. We have seven to go and if Utah wins tonight we will be four games behind to have home court (we can't tie them, we have to be better than them).

We need to prepare for the playoffs and when your key player has a 'stiff back' or any other type of injury you HAVE to take your precautions and hold him out, that's the only 'sane' thing to do. The key to us doing **** in the playoffs is health, health, and more health.

Yao is great and all, but he can't even lead this team to season wins without McGrady in the lineup. McGrady can win season games, but he can't do crap in the playoffs without Yao being healthy and in form. JVG doesn't want to lose his job just yet and he knows pretty damn well that a healthy Yao/McGrady combo is his best ticket out of the first round, which means that his job is saved.

Seriously, relax, the season is already over, the rest of the games are not worthy of pushing our guys to play through injuries, however minor they might seem.

 

but did he drive? no one is saying he's not struggling w/ his shot. but he was aggressive in that game.

but v. utah, he looked like he didn't even want to pass the 20ft line.

 

oh so he missed a potential game winner, big deal. 3 straight free throws in OT when it's looking like we would lose was pretty clutch. getting your teammates open shots is also apart of his job. if 10 assists is exposed then i guess he was.

 

Such anger? I'm merely expressing my opinion, and obviously not the only one who feels this way. Some I'm a YOF because I critique T-Mac's attitude? If so, then I apologize, he should sit and laugh with JL3 on the bench on he wants when his team is down in a game that is critical in the playoff race. Forget going back to the lockeroom and getting his back treated so he can come back and help this team. F@ck it, just forget about lookin concerned period. Laugh away with the Carlton lookalike.

 

Double,

I understand all too well what a sore back means etc. If Tmac was really all that sore then he should not even play, this is a meaningless game.

Agreed?


DD

 

Agreed.

 

The reporter said he was left out for "precautionary reasons." In other words, he could have still played. We're just throwing away games now like they don't mean anything. Home court advantage in the first round is huge. Utah is one of the best home court teams in the league. Perhaps you don't think this game was a big deal, but in reality we just significantly reduced our chances of getting out of the first round.

 

no. he didnt drive! he didnt drive AT ALL down the stretch

 

dude, do u know anything about the back's anatomy?

 

You should read more Fran blogs. The guys criticizes T-Mac even in our wins. In a game where he doesn't shoot well but does an excellent job of involving teammates, Fran will look at his FG% and say things like he didn't show up till late in the game... blah blah blah. Fran sucks. Look what he said today.

 

meaningless? utah could lose tonight and we go back to .5 games out. tmac wanted to play. he said his back has been tight all week so we should be proud he was able to play v. utah and start the game tonight.

tmac wanted to give it a try b/c this IS AN IMPORTANT GAME. utah could lose tonight.

 

I'm talking about down the stretch. What did he do? he shot a runner at the freethrow line and hit nothing but backboard. missed another jumper just inside the three point line.

ok. he got fouled shooting a 3......he's supposed to make all three freethrows. this isnt the ****in NBDL. there is absolutely no excuse to miss freethrows.

 

i agreed he should have played. but did u see the way he ran when the warriors were on that fast break? if he played, he would be restricted to 20ft and out. shooting jumpers.

 

Carlton lookalike is pretty good

Still, someone throw this guy a life preserver...he's drowning

read about back injuries before you complain about people not playing because of them

 

oh man. do u want the man to drive all game? if u saw any part of the game, u know tmac was very aggressive v. the lakers. even kobe didn't drive down the stretch v. us, the nuggetrs, and today v. the clippers so what are you trying to say?

 

HCA is gone AFTER tonight's lose if Utah wins. But it was still very much alive. We were only 1.5 games behind, with Utah having a tougher schedule and our season finale in Utah. Was very much alive I'd say. By your logic, Warriors should have just tanked the rest of the season too since there were 1.5 games behind the clips, and a 1.5 game lead is just so ****en insurmountable.

 

do you need a breakdown of league free throw percentages by decade or something. no one is suppose to make all their free throws, we hope they do, but no one has ever come close.

you're just an idiotic hater is all. kill yourself.

 

YEAH, IT'S ONLY A BACK INJURY

WALK IT OFF, BABY

 

So what if he had a stiff back to begin with but thought he would give it a go and see how he plays? Would you still blame him for doing so or would you then give him credit for at least trying to play in a 'meaningless game'?

You guys assume WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY too much, always trying to overanalyze everything and reading more into something than what's there, always looking around for 'conspiracies' and never accepting the official story.

I don't think the Rockets' staff/coaches/trainers are conspiring to cover up for McGrady's early game struggle, I don't think they would make up an injury excuse for McGrady to avoid having him 'look bad' in front of the fans. I really don't think he's as fragile as some of you make him out to be.