Aching for Amareposted: Wednesday, October 12, 2005

Over the past few years, "microfracture surgery" has become one of the most dreaded phrases in the NBA lexicon. The mere mention of it brings to mind crushed careers and ruined potential.
How great would Penny Hardaway and Jamal Mashburn have been if they hadn't had it?

How awesome would it have been to see Allen Iverson play with the real Chris Webber, the pre-micro C-Webb?

How many more games would the Knicks have won last season if Allan Houston had not been sidelined by the dreaded MS?

So the news that Amare Stoudemire underwent microfracture surgery on his left knee Tuesday was nothing short of devastating -- not just for Stoudemire and the Phoenix Suns, but for the entire NBA and basketball fans everywhere.

Before I go on, I don't want to act as if Amare is definitely damaged goods. There are reasons to believe he will come back as the out-of-this-world player he was last season. Jason Kidd recovered relatively quickly from the surgery and doesn't appear to have lost much, if anything, off his game. John Stockton and Stephen Davis, the Carolina Panthers' running back, also returned to form after the MS.

So this could turn out to be a mere speed bump on Amare's road to hoop immortality, especially considering his age (22), work ethic (tireless), mental state (strong) and the fact that doctors say his injury was not as severe as any of the tragic cases mentioned above.

But obviously, there's the possibility of a negative outcome as well.

There is little question Amare will be back, but if the MS takes away his explosiveness (as it did with Webber), we're looking at a much different, probably much less effective player.

Stoudemire's greatest strength is his explosion. You just don't see that type of burst in a player so big and strong. I believe that rare combination was going to propel Stoudemire to legendary status, right next to Tim Duncan as one of the top two or three power forwards of all time.

Some might consider this blasphemy, but I'm saying it: Stoudemire was going to be better than Kevin Garnett (and he still may, of course). KG's definitely more versatile, but Amare has more beast in him.

But what if that incomparable burst was left on the operating table? The strength and the beast will still be in Amare, and he's also developed a nice mid-range jumper, all of which should assure that he'll still be a top-flight player. But he's not the most fundamentally-sound guy around.

Amare overpowers and intimidates folks, similar to the way Shawn Kemp used to do. But once Kemp lost that explosion (in his case, due to substance abuse and weight gain during the 1998 lockout), he was never the same. He didn't have the fundamental skills to overcome his loss of athleticism.

A player like Portland's Zach Randolph, who is attempting to come back from microfracture surgery this season, isn't hurt as much by a loss of explosion because his game is not based on athleticism. He gets by on guile and craftiness. Amare may have to develop some of that when he comes back.

As for this season's Suns, well, it's obvious that they're toast. Stoudemire and somebody named Pat Burke are their only players taller than 6-9. Kurt Thomas will be a nice pick-and-roll partner with Steve Nash, but if they're counting on Brian Grant to do their dirty work, good luck.

I like Grant, who also had microfracture surgery, when he's healthy. But a "healthy Grant" is almost an oxymoron.

Steve Nash is so good at making his teammates better that he could have the Suns overachieving in Stoudemire's absence. But overachieving for them -- out West no less -- is staying near .500.

If the more likely scenario comes to pass and they're horrible, they may want to consider keeping Stoudemire out all season. Why risk having him come back too soon and perhaps suffering another setback if the season is lost?

As for the Suns' decision to give him a five-year, $73 million contract, all I can say is, "Good for Amare."

Whether the Suns should have known the severity of Stoudemire's knee injury -- they were aware of his soreness weeks before signing him -- is for a doctor to answer. But they obviously thought the injury was not serious and may not have wanted to risk upsetting him by waiting to sign him, thus risking him going elsewhere as a free agent out of spite.

I hope the Suns get the real Amare for their investment and my gut tells me they will, that he'll return to form after the surgery.

If he doesn't, it'll be simply dreadful.

Over the past few years, "microfracture surgery" has become one of the most dreaded phrases in the NBA lexicon. The mere mention of it brings to mind crushed careers and ruined potential.
How great would Penny Hardaway and Jamal Mashburn have been if they hadn't had it?

That's a big misunderstanding people have. NO ONE would have the surgery if the surgery ruined careers. It's the severely damaged cartilage that ruins careers (and that requires surgery). The athletes are far worse off than before the injury, but they'd likely be even worse off without the microfracture surgery. The surgery isn't intended to return a player to where he was before the carilage damage; it's just intended to promote at least some cartilage repair.

[Edited by - Bonn1997 on 10-12-2005 2:11 PM]