T-Mac speaks - Says he is ready to go

[Indazone]

http://www.nba.com/rockets/video/2009/11/23/11232009TracyINTV1mov-1135044/index.html

[djohn2oo8]

And Adelman clearly doesn't want to play him. Which is stupid, because his trade value is already non existent, if he plays well it would only help

[Rip-Hamilton32]

Hamilton and Max for Stacy McBaby, make it happen Joe D

[Double-Up]

Hamilton and Max for Stacy McBaby, make it happen Joe D

Aight, let's play ball then.

[Culburn369]

Now, before he takes the court I want a show of hands of Houston fandom who still believe you're better off without McGrady. Cuz woe be to anybody who comes in later with that line. I will personally climb up in their shit and play dead.

Now,

Let us proceed...

[djohn2oo8]

He's not gonna take the court in a Rocket's uniform again

[Indazone]

I think the Rockets will be better with a full strength T-Mac

[iggypop123]

he will make a good ny knick. they will appreciate his ass even if its a crippled t-mac. rockets think they have something special with their team i guess not letting him play is also part of the equation.

[robbie380]

http://www.click2houston.com/video/21703644/index.html

another vid of tmac....a bit louder

[Culburn369]

In contrast Ron Artest is calm & contented.

[djohn2oo8]

Trade McGrady for a box of cookies...Naturally the cookies are tougher

[BlackSwordsMan]

bonner,mason,ratliff straight up trade

[baseline bum]

bonner,mason,ratliff straight up trade

So the Spurs can have another first round exit? I'll pass on the second-round virgin.

[ElNono]

bonner,mason,ratliff straight up trade

Not enough. The dude is due $22 million this year...

[Indazone]

Spurs are doing that quite well on their own without needing any help. Going for the first round playoff exit or not making it at all.

[Indazone]

Getting ugly...I hope the Rockets and Adleman don't Marbury T-Mac.

[Many PackYao]

I say let him play to earn his fucking money, come off the bench and compete for a starting spot. It should raise the play of the current starters like Ariza and Battier.

[Indazone]

statement was released by Rockets Head Orthopedic Dr. Walter Lowe following Rockets G Tracy McGrady’s MRI this afternoon at the Memorial Hermann Sports Medicine Institute.



”Today's MRI showed no change from the test previously conducted in September. Tracy is on a normal course of recovery and has the expected level of performance for someone at his stage following microfracture surgery. We will continue to monitor his progress over the coming weeks to ensure that pain and swelling are kept to a minimum after further periods of practice participation."

[Indazone]

I'm hoping for the best that the Rockets are just being cautious with him so he doesn't have a big setback like Amare coming back from surgery. At worst it's a big personality conflict with Adleman and T-Mac and he doesn't get to play at all.

I"m with Many on this, let him come off the bench and earn his starting spot back.

[The Franchise]

I don't see what the big deal is. I want T-mac to play, but we are almost a month into the season, so he's going to need to practice with the team to get familiar with his new teammates. Were he just stuck in there, it would disrupt the rythmn that the team has built without him. Give him a few practices to get familiar with how the new pieces fit, and I have no doubt that we could be the best team in Texas.

[RedsLakers24]

Release him so the Lakers could sign him and he could win a championship

[sefant77]

There are ppl that still care about him?

[The Franchise]

There are ppl that still care about him?

Your team will if he can come back healthy. :lol

[djohn2oo8]

Your team will if he can come back healthy. :lol

Adleman has iso'ed him, let it go

[Indazone]

and now direct from T-Mac himself.

Who do you believe...the lemmings from CF's or T-Mac? Dude just posted this at 9 PM on his own blog site.

http://www.t-mac.com/tmac/blogDetail/2166

What's Hot
Mon, Nov 23rd 2009, 09:12

Update on Return

Hey everyone
I want to keep everyone posted on what’s happening, so here it goes. It’s looking as if I may be back on the court this week. I know there were reports going around that there were issues with me and the coach but there isn’t. Together, we are looking at the best scenario on when my return should be, and we are hopeful it will be this week. The team is playing great together and getting me back out there is a decision my coach, doctors and general manager will help make.

I saw this morning there were reports that I was out of practice yesterday because of a sore back. The truth is that we didn’t even have practice yesterday. Now, I know how rumors get started so I need to put this one to rest. I slipped the other day in Atlanta at the game and landed on my tail bone. If any of you have ever done that, then you know it’s no big deal, but just is sore. We all know how “T-Mac out because of back” can get interpreted the wrong way, so I thought I would explain before that train spun out of control.

All is good here and again, I appreciate your support, love and continued encouragement. Hopefully, you will see me back on the court playing this week.
Mac

[Culburn369]

What a soap opera.

[j-money24]

im rooting for you t-mac

[Chieflion]

Just buy him out.

[badfish22]

Mac

:lol what a way to sign off

Isn't T-mac already a shortened version of his name? :lol

[Indazone]

I'm with T-Mac on this one. I think the dude just really wants to play bad but hasn't demonstrated in practice that he's ready yet. Adelman and Turner will watch him carefully to see how he takes the ball to the hole, how his shots are falling and his rhythm. He'll play again soon though.

[Culburn369]

Good to see turmoil in Houston.

[Indazone]

hah...Houston fans are always like this. They were like this when Francis sat on the bench. They got all bent out of shape cause Yao and T-Mac couldn't get along...also a rumor. Then they went out and said that Mike James needed to play then he did and sucked it up all over the court and the bulletin board was about to explode. The best one was when Bonzi and Spanoulis were in JVG's doghouse and then the subsequent firing of JVG and bringing Adleman on board. Then there are the Yao only fans vs the T-Mac only fans. You get the feeling that at any moment Clutchfans will explode and the Houston Rockets will go in the toilet.

That's the fk'd up thing about Clutchfans. All hyperbole and drama. I think Clutch just likes it that way. The more drama the more banning. The more bans and demotions the more drama.

[ginobili's bald spot]

If T-Mac starts playing for the Rockets again they will get worse.

[duncan228]

SI.com Roundtable (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/basketball/nba/11/24/roundtable/index.html)

Tracy McGrady appears to be the latest superstar butting heads with his team. Would he be of more help to the Rockets when he finally returns or to another team? If another club, which one?

Thomsen: The Rockets are doing fine without him, and it's not like his return would transform them into championship contenders. His value to them is based on his expiring contract, whether the Rockets trade his $22.5 million salary for talent or let it expire to leave them potentially $10 million or more under the cap next summer. Coming off knee surgeries the last two years, McGrady needs to showcase himself in order to earn a new contract next summer. But he needs to be careful about coming back too soon, because if his athleticism hasn't improved since last year, then he'll have no takers. And his market will decline even further if his return has a negative impact on the Rockets.

In the meantime, his high-maintenance dramatics aren't improving his woeful reputation among GMs around the league. If this turns into one of those Stephon Marbury situations, with the Rockets paying McGrady his salary and refusing to play him all year, that would murder his career. He needs to work with his team in a constructive way. And if that means a deal to another team, he could provide short-term relief to the Knicks or 76ers, but New York has nothing to trade (the Rockets have no need for David Lee), and Philadelphia isn't likely to dangle Andre Iguodala.

McCallum: Man, you just tossed this one up and asked me to knock it out of the park, didn't you? T-Mac is one of the biggest squanderers of talent in the history of the NBA. The Rockets without him are a nice surprise. They play hard, they play defense and they will stay in the playoff hunt, albeit the bottom of the hunt. I doubt if they will be worse, but they won't be any better when he comes back. McGrady is not the kind of blend-in player to help a playoff team -- he would have to go to a bad team where he would at least draw some fans, whom he will torture with spurts of brilliance amid long periods of ineffectiveness.

Mannix: As tense a situation as it is in Houston, the Rockets will welcome McGrady back when -- I repeat, when -- he is healthy. Let's remember, this isn't a guy who is a great judge of his own health. He chose to battle through a knee injury last season when rest was probably more appropriate. And he's motivated to play by his pending free agency. When his body is right, he should come back -- and he should come back to Houston.

Markazi: If McGrady can play like the seven-time All-Star he was before he got hurt, he would be a huge boost to the Rockets. But that's not the player they'll be getting this season. There's no doubt coach Rick Adelman and general manager Daryl Morey would have him playing this week if he looked like his old self, but they know he's nowhere close to returning. McGrady, whenever he does return, will no doubt disrupt the chemistry of a team beginning to find itself and ranks sixth in the league in scoring (103.7 ppg). As much as I don't see McGrady helping the Rockets this season, I also don't see him going anywhere else after not playing in nearly a year following microfracture surgery.

[lefty]

And Adelman clearly doesn't want to play him. Which is stupid, because his trade value is already non existent, if he plays well it would only help
Good point

[Kai]

McGrady wants to play, thinks he's ready to go but the team doesn't. I don't see what the big deal is. Wake me up when he calls the coach out or something. Right now, it's a non-issue.

[Lars]

I think the way the organization is handling it is terrible.

[Kai]

I think fans/the media are either too used to the drama, or just trying to create their own. This really isn't a big deal. Anyone who is hurt and works hard to recover will want to play, that's all Tracy is saying. The doctors and trainers don't think he's ready yet, and don't want a repeat of last year.

The team is playing just fine right now, so there's no added pressure to bring him back. T-Mac hasn't done anything that bad. He predicted his return date prematurely and dressed out, but hasn't openly complained about anything. I think everyone is just trying to make something out of nothing.

[djohn2oo8]

I think the way the organization is handling it is terrible.

I had that view of it like that, but I came to realize that Tracy is NOT ready physically, and chemistry wise. For one, you can't throw him in with the other guys, even if it is bringing him of the bench right now, because one full practice isn't enough to show that he is ready. Second, his knee swells up after a long workout. The Rockets are making sure that he is ready and he doesn't rush back and injure himself, and screw with the chemistry at the same time. In order to maintain chemistry, he has to build trust with his teammates again. Taking him along slowly is the right thing to do, because rushing him back just so he can earn a contract which he may not get anyway is not smart. 8-6 start, they are thinking no need to rush since they are doing well right now. If it was a 2-11 start, then he would be back right now.

[djohn2oo8]

I think the way the organization is handling it is terrible.

And remember that McGrady announcing his decision to have surgery without informing the team screwed them out of getting Vince Carter

[Kai]

And remember that McGrady announcing his decision to have surgery without informing the team screwed them out of getting Vince Carter

First of all, there's absolutely no way that you could know if that happened, or that it even probably happened.

That being said, this is Tracy's biggest problem. the guy needs to learn to shut his mouth.
He said he was going to get surgery before it was even decided he actually would.
He said he was 'ready' last year when he clearly wasn't.
He said that game 7 against Utah wasn't the biggest game of his career when it clearly was.
"Feels good to be in the 2nd round"
"Its on me!"
"I've never had a great big man like Shaq or Tim Duncan on my team that would bring me a title" (with Yao on his team)
"its all my fault"

after all that, people are just going to be ready to criticize whatever he says.

[dbreiden83080]

So long Asshole..

[djohn2oo8]

Trade him to the Knicks for future first round picks and fillers....Yes, the Knicks are that stupid