Rumor: Amare out for the Year??? Say it aint so

[Black Jesus]

Moral of the story: Every time the Suns renew their commitment to Stoudemire, he has a secret injury. Will the front office ever learn?

??? Secret injury? The Suns knew his knees were killing him that 04-05 season, he was icing them after every game. And how is this a secret, he just got poked in the eye.

Great. Now we have to hear everyone start up with the "Diaw is a top NBA player" stuff again.

He is. 15 PPG, 6.5 reb, 5 ast

 

[jagu]

And trading a 26 year old all-NBA player for less than fair value wouldn't make us any more of a championship team now or in the future either so what is your point?

If that is your opinion, you should be happy he is missing games because that way we will get a lottery pick (maybe we could get lucky ONE TIME) instead of a first round exit and you should complain about Nash and Shaq still being on the team unless you believe they have enough left in the tank for a run next season if Sarver keeps the pieces together.

Granted the value wasn't that fair but are you ready to give Amare an extended deal? Do you think he warrants a max contract? I agree that i would not make a deal that wasn't fair and perhaps that why they eventually kept Amare but I'm sick of seeing this team tease us with expectations. I hope Amare can be moved in the offseason for some better pieces.

 

[Griffin]

Well, this is just so typical. Just when we get a glimmer of hope, its taken away. Though I think we can still play pretty well without him, but it's going to be a lot harder. And he might miss the playoffs too if we make it.

Btw, Chris Wilcox would have been a nice fit now too. And he was just traded for next to nothing.

 

[krispydude]

well, if we can still sneak in at a 7th or 8th seed, 8 weeks puts us right at the beginning of the playoffs. he won't get out of shape with an eye injury and can prolly start shooting in a couple weeks. his jump shot will be crisp come playoffs!

bring on the lakers or spurs!

 

[AceP]

WTF ...

Now what? find a backup PF from FA market?

 

[myrondizzo]

Looks like it's actually official.

Well that's nice. Now what?

www.nbadraft.net

 

[BillsCarnage]

When the heck did this happen in the game? Amare played most of the 4th quarter trying to get 50, but when they finally took him out he didn't appear to be in any pain, unless i missed it.

 

[TheHopToad]

When the heck did this happen in the game? Amare played most of the 4th quarter trying to get 50, but when they finally took him out he didn't appear to be in any pain, unless i missed it.

I was thinking the same thing. IIRC, he got poked in the eye sometime in the third quarter and did not come out of the game. He went on to score and dunk more.

I didn't equate the injury on the floor to season ending surgery...

 

[Bufalay]

When the heck did this happen in the game? Amare played most of the 4th quarter trying to get 50, but when they finally took him out he didn't appear to be in any pain, unless i missed it.

There are no pain receptors in your retina.

 

[lou_skywalker]

I was thinking the same thing. IIRC, he got poked in the eye sometime in the third quarter and did not come out of the game. He went on to score and dunk more.

I didn't equate the injury on the floor to season ending surgery...

well the surgery is already done. lets hope he can come back in less than 8 weeks. the doctor said the recovery time varies case by case.

 

[TJ]

So who starts in his place? Amundson? Barnes? Dudley? Barbosa (with Rich at 3
And Grant at 4)

 

[NDSunsfan]

My guess is that he didn't have any symptoms of a retinal detachment at the time of the finger poke. More likely was that he woke up yesterday and noted some flashes (kind of like the spots you see when you rub your eyes). Those are usually the first signs of a retinal break (detachment or tear). The flashes either didn't go away or got worse (bigger) and he mentioned it to the training staff and was immediately seen. Depending on the size of the RD, he either had a scleral buckle, which is a silicone belt type band that is placed "around the eye" to help pull the retina down. Probably had a little laser done to try and tack down the retina from the 'inside' as well.

I would think 8 weeks is being optimistic. Obviously, the action of running and the physical exertion required is the problem. The longer he lets it heal, the better the chance of this not recurring is. From a 'fixing it' standpoint, it's fixed right now. I would think the time frame for return is based on whether or not the ophthalmologist has season tickets and wants to watch playoff hoops in Phoenix.

My guess is that he's done until next year. Little retinal detachment: you fix it and vision is normal and fine. Big retinal detachment or recurrence of retinal detachment: vision goes bye-bye.

I would think he'll have the biggest/best goggles he can (a'la Kareem/james worthy) and/or rip hamilton mask for the remainder of his career. Just like he should've been wearing after his first incident.

 

[BillsCarnage]

question answered above.

 

[Arizona's Finest]

LOL. You can only giggle at this point. Who knew Bidwill sold his soul to the devil and his cheapness and bad mojo was transferred in state to Robert Sarver.

You know who would have been the best coach ever for a jump shooting team with no Amare.......?

You can all probably answer that one for yourself

I'm guessing a 05/06 type run just ain't going to happen this time.....

 

[Covert Rain]

8 weeks?? Wow. This team is probably not making the playoffs. If any forwards get bought out now...it almost becomes a must to sign one...tax...or no tax.

 

[Folster]

Figures. Guys like Amundson and Dudley need to step up their game big time. Courtney Sims will probably get a look as well. The other option.... Tank the season and try to get a top 10 pick.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Figures. Guys like Amundson and Dudley need to step up their game big time. Courtney Sims will probably get a look as well. The other option.... Tank the season and try to get a top 10 pick.

ugh, well at least this happened this year and not next (when we don't have our first round pick). now if we only hadn't fired porter (so that pick would be higher!).

the real crappy thing about it? this just isn't that talent rich of a draft. maybe we take a flier on jennings as our pg of the future? no mayos, roses in this one...there's blake and everyone else.

 

[Folster]

ugh, well at least this happened this year and not next (when we don't have our first round pick). now if we only hadn't fired porter (so that pick would be higher!).

the real crappy thing about it? this just isn't that talent rich of a draft. maybe we take a flier on jennings as our pg of the future? no mayos, roses in this one...there's blake and everyone else.

We have 30 wins already. If we do decide to tank, I don't see us getting in the top 5 unless we get lucky like Chicago did. And we know that won't happen even though this franchised is owed a bit of luck. I think the best/worst we can finish in the draft if we tank is 7-10. Knowing the Suns, we will finish 8th in the West, get crushed by the Lakers in the first round, and get a pick in the high teens.

 

[YouJustGotSUNSD]

He seemed to be just fine the rest of the game. If there was an issue he would have been pulled asap.

He should wear the goggles though imo.

Way to jinx it YJGS!

Wear the freaking goggles man. I hope to christ it wasnt a fashion decision.

 

[Hat]

Paul Coro insight:

http://www.azcentral.com/members/Blog/PaulCoro/46697

Here is a summary of what was learned this morning after Amare Stoudemire underwent surgery for a partially detached retina today.

THE INJURY: This was likely caused by what happened Oct. 1 as much as what happened Wednesday night. Boris Diaw inadvertently poked Stoudemire in the eye, partially tearing his iris in that right eye. Stoudemire has been having checkups ever since. The eye was bothering him some before Wednesday's game and he had just been drawing attention to it on the play before Al Thornton's dunk try, when Stoudemire tried to block it and again was struck in the eye by Thornton. He came out of the game briefly and returned without complaint, scoring 42 in the game. He had a 1 p.m., coinciding with the trade deadline, follow-up appointment on the Suns' off-day Thursday. It was at that time that the Suns knew he might need surgery. He went for a second opinion later in the day and underwent surgery today, when the full extent of the damage was learned. After the Diaw poke, Stoudemire said he was going to wear goggles the rest of his career but it lasted only seven games, including the 49-point game, before he ditched them. However, it does not sound like the goggles would have prevented the injury. But the Thornton play did worsen a pre-existing condition.

THE PROGNOSIS: Initially, there was talk Wednesday that he might have to miss six to eight weeks. After the surgery, it became a full eight weeks. He can't even do any running or anything that would jar him for a month. The hope is that he could rejoin the team for the playoffs, if they are able to earn a spot. The Suns currently sit a game out of eighth place in the West. "When I came in today, people asked me, 'Did you hear the news?' I thought they were talking about Rihanna," Suns forward Jared Dudley said.

THE PLAN: Run, run, run. They did not make an announcement about what the new starting lineup would be but it sounds like Grant Hill could be sliding to power forward with Jason Richardson and Leandro Barbosa on the wings. It's going to mean continued time for Louis Amundson and Jared Dudley and possibly Robin Lopez too. Matt Barnes will also see time at power forward. The Suns think they can continue with the same style and even the pick-and-rolls but that the finishes just won't be the same. They are obviously going to live and die by their perimeter shooting more often. The night of ridiculous points in the paint tallies are likely gone and Alvin Gentry has already gone to the aforementioned group and told them they will need to step their games up.

THE FALLOUT: Everyone's reaction: it sure would be nice to still have Boris Diaw around. Steve Nash already said as much today. After the shootaround, Nash said, "It's just going to be tough for us. We traded Boris and we lose Amare so we lost two really good power forwards. That's going to put a strain on any team. We'll just try to make do and do the best we can. We've still got a lot of good players and if we come together and have a good spirit and we're competitive. I think we'll win a lot of games. In 05-06, we had maybe our best year in many ways and Boris just fit in seamlessly and was outstanding. We don't have that now. Lou and Jared are capable of giving us great minutes but Boris was the type of guy you could really go to. We don't have a player like that." .... The Suns were going to be financially hamstrung from picking up any players who had been released or bought out but that is now a possibility again. Mikki Moore was released by Sacramento but might be Boston-bound.

UNRELATED FALLOUT: Shaquille O'Neal is unhappy. Others say that O'Neal is ticked that his name was in trade talks, particularly on Wednesday's deadline day. Asked if he would talk to reporters today, O'Neal said, "Never again."

Someone posted this on RealGM as well. Let's cross our fingers its more like a 6 week thing than 8:

this is what i know, amare will have a follow up with his doctor in about 3 weeks. the problem is that in some cases, however, a second surgery is needed. If a second surgery is not needed, amare should be back in a few weeks after that with custom goggles to protect his eye from any type of hit to the eye. He will not be wearing the same goggles that he wore in the beginning of the year. that is what i found out.

 

[elindholm]

Everyone's reaction: it sure would be nice to still have Boris Diaw around.

Why, so he could injure someone else too?

 

[Ninjafish]

Everyone's reaction: it sure would be nice to still have Boris Diaw around. Steve Nash already said as much today. After the shootaround, Nash said, "It's just going to be tough for us. We traded Boris and we lose Amare so we lost two really good power forwards. That's going to put a strain on any team.

Dammit..... If only we hadn't made that stupid trade.

 

[Covert Rain]

Way to jinx it YJGS!

Wear the freaking goggles man. I hope to christ it wasnt a fashion decision.

For clarification. Dr. J S. said in an interview goggles would have made zero difference. He said the eye was already deteriorating before the eye poke. Amare had advised team trainers he was seeing "floaters" (spots) before the Clips game which means before the poke. The poke probably made it worse but Amare was headed for surgery poke or no poke.

 

[Hat]

Everyone's reaction: it sure would be nice to still have Boris Diaw around.

Why, so he could injure someone else too?

To be fair, it was Nash that said that. He's been kind of a whiner lately. Sure Boris would help in this situation, but hindsight is 20/20. He regressed from is 06 self, so it's not like he would contribute much anyways

 

[Hat]

Way to jinx it YJGS!

Wear the freaking goggles man. I hope to christ it wasnt a fashion decision.

He didn't wear them beause they kept fogging up on him.