he Knicks would be wise to have a conservative approach with ailing Amar’e Stoudemire and have him ready to go for the NBA playoffs instead of rushing him back sooner, according to one medical expert on bulging disks.

Stoudemire sought a second opinion Tuesday night in Miami after the Knicks announced Monday he would undergo non-surgical treatment and be out indefinitely. People familiar with the situation said having Stoudemire ready for the first round, which would begin at the end of April, is the club’s goal.

Dr. Wellington Hsu , a back specialist at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago who specializes in sports medicine, told The Post a common procedure to treat bulging disks for pro athletes is an epidural steroid injection in addition to oral anti-inflammatory medication.

That treatment conceivably could get Stoudemire back on the court in as fast as 10 days, but Hsu said it would be unwise. According to Hsu, back-strengthening, rehab exercises to increase power in the core over a four-week period is the likeliest course to give Stoudemire a chance of not being prone to reinjuring it.

Hsu, who has not treated Stoudemire, has done studies on NBA players with bulging disk injuries.

“They need him to withstand the rigors of a seven-game series,’’ Hsu said. “The more you wait, the likelihood is of getting stronger. He needs to demonstrate full range of motion of his back without any pain. The question they are probably asking is how long to shut activity down and work on his core, seeing they have the playoffs in mind and using that as a timetable.’’

The Knicks end their regular-season schedule April 26 in Charlotte and the playoffs begin two days later.

People familiar with the situation said Stoudemire’s MRI exam was so conclusive, it is doubtful surgery is on the table for now. Surgery would put Stoudemire out for the playoffs, too. The conversations are linked to the course of treatment and a lot depends upon how Stoudemire responds to them.

Stoudemire suffered back spasms and a pulled back muscle in Game 2 of the first round vs. Boston last April and was very limited the rest of the series. He spent six months rehabbing.

Hsu said it is possible Stoudemire had a bulging disk for a while and that caused spasms and a muscle pull. Stoudemire said Saturday night after his back stiffened it was a separate injury from Boston. Hsu also said a bulging disk doesn’t go away unless surgery takes place.

“Surgery is a very reasonable option,’’ Hsu said of the offseason.

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/knicks/doc_preaches_patience_with_stoudemire_mQs4W1hqmTVTxSoaBqXyFL#ixzz1qPuwLcqI

nyk4ever wrote:this is kinda where i wish the knicks had the suns medical staff.. they are great with this kinda thing.

same... I wish Dolan would use his deep pockets to gobble up the best medical staff, statisticians, etc.

I'm just not getting my hopes up with Amare because I've seen it with Ewing, H20, Mcdyess. Either they will rush him back or the playoffs will be underway with the uncertainty of whether he will play at some point or not. It all all you will be reading about in the media and actually become a distraction.

SupremeCommander wrote:

nyk4ever wrote:this is kinda where i wish the knicks had the suns medical staff.. they are great with this kinda thing.

same... I wish Dolan would use his deep pockets to gobble up the best medical staff, statisticians, etc.

I read somewhere that "knicks test their players sweat to gain advantage".....

It could be sarcastic but the comment is the knicks do a lot. They have those crazy computers on them to monitor output and measure movemnts in the preseason tapes from last year. First team to do this.

We all read about H20's but we really don't know a whole lot other than we burned with some bad contracts.

For all we know, our doctors might have also seen what the suns doctors see but docs don't give contracts and not every owner will listen. Dolan can ignore advice he is given. Sarver was willing to give Amare 3 or 4 years. Not the 5 we did.