Should the Spurs rest Duncan?

[Vingianx]

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/5423810

What do you do if you're the Spurs right now?

Resting Tim Duncan any longer than a couple of days puts you at serious risk of losing home court throughout the playoffs and could drop you to a four-seed. Playing Duncan every night could get you the top seed, but that means your superstar will be hurting throughout the playoffs.

We caught most of the Rockets/Spurs game yesterday, and Duncan looks like he's in constant pain from that foot injury. He's nowhere near 100 percent. If it were us, we'd seriously consider taking our chances with a healthy Duncan on the road. ...

[E20]

As stated before, plantar faciitis doesn't go away after a couple days of resting. It's not even certain if a month or two would help because there's the chance it just might spring up again. Rasheed Wallace had it during the 2003-2004 Playoff run and he knew pain or no pain it's the Playoffs and he has to play, I'm guessing Timmy will do the samething. I doubt Pop would bench Timmy at this point in the season with the standings so close and like only a month left in the regular season.

[Vingianx]

That injury is just holding Duncan back from leading the Spurs into a strong closing of the regular season...it's keeping them from being considered a Dynasty because you can't spell Dynasty without Duncan....

[mavsfan1000]

Yes you can. You just have to borrow the last letter in Mohammad. :lol

[Obstructed_View]

As stated before, plantar faciitis doesn't go away after a couple days of resting.

It's amazing how few people seem to get this point through their heads. Does anyone know if Duncan's having the shockwave therapy again this season?

[zocool16]

Timmy rules injured or not! lol... at least in my heart he will always rule

[SpursWillOwn]

Yea.. he'll always be tt most dominant powerfowards in the league.. Hope he'll be the 97 tim again

[zocool16]

I just wanna know if no matter the outcome, after the season's over and he comes back for 06-07. Will his plantar fasciatis problems be over? Will he need treatment over the summer? Is it 100 percent sure that the summer rest will cure him and he'll be 100 percent healthy next season?

[MaNuMaNiAc]

Who are you asking? 'cause I'm almost certain noone here knows

[zocool16]

i dont know, maybe there's a freaking doctor or an expert on plantar fasciatis, maybe Tim Duncan's personal doctor posts on here!... lol just anyone who knows...

[SoCalSpursFan]

Timmy > Everyother PF

[WalterBenitez]

As stated before, plantar faciitis doesn't go away after a couple days of resting. It's not even certain if a month or two would help because there's the chance it just might spring up again. Rasheed Wallace had it during the 2003-2004 Playoff run and he knew pain or no pain it's the Playoffs and he has to play, I'm guessing Timmy will do the samething. I doubt Pop would bench Timmy at this point in the season with the standings so close and like only a month left in the regular season.

So, i f you are right about his foot, there's no reason to rest him, unless TD has another issue were resting could help.

I don't have in mind the rest of the games, but in those were the game is almost easy or after halftime is decided I'll send TD to the bench (his house, a beach ...wherever :D)

[FreshPrince22]

Rasheed had it in 03-04. Though I guess I wouldn't really know if he's fully 100%.

[SouthernFried]

My cousin is a Podiatrist. She says PF is pretty much a forever thing. Like, once you rupture a disk in your back, it's not gonna ever become "unruptured." But, the level of severity, ability to do things, is variable with each. Some are worse than others...some are better. I ruptured a disk in my back around 1990. After about 6 months, I was back on the basketball court...and played another 10 years.

Time will tell.

[mrpach]

ok, so resting him wont help him, but keeping him playing might make it worse?

[leemajors]

ok, so resting him wont help him, but keeping him playing might make it worse?

playing on it doesn't make it worse. resting him for a week or two, even a month won't help either. he just has to play on it till he can rest in the offseason.

[easjer]

There are no guarantees, as we saw from the December debates about sitting Tim. Everyone says three months is the minimum time he needs to sit. The problem with doing that mid-season was that there was no guarantee that it would be effective and that he would in fact return to his former level of play, making it a futile effort that pretty much guaranteed a low playoff seeding, a disruption of offense and defense with no guarantee of a pyout in return.

So maybe?

They did some treatments with limited success earlier in the season - a sort of soundwave that affected the area. There are other options for treatment, which include surgery. A surgery may return him to his former self or leave him debilitated. Offseason will require a lot of resting (by which the docs mean no walking on it, no movement, etc - which may be difficult with an active 1 year old), and if things don't improve possibly looking at other measures.

The only guarantee is that he needs the summer rest at a minimum. It will not get better without that; the difficulty is in whether or not it will get better with it, and unless your crystal ball is working . . .

[easjer]

That injury is just holding Duncan back from leading the Spurs into a strong closing of the regular season...it's keeping them from being considered a Dynasty because you can't spell Dynasty without Duncan....
The reality is that Timmy may never be the same. This injury may go away with rest, it may not. It may go away with further shockwave treatment, or it may not.

Clearly, for the rest of this season, and if it doesn't heal then the rest of Tim Duncan's career, the Spurs have to adjust.

They've been learning all season how to rely on other people when Tim can't hit his shot or rotate quickly enough. If the Spurs are foolish enough to pin their hopes on a full recovery (which will not happen this season), then they don't deserve to be champions.

It sucks. It sucks for the fans, it sucks for the Spurs, but it mostly sucks for Timmy, who holds himself to such a high standard, who is a fierce competitor, and who came into the season rested and looking so good.

The Spurs will make the adjustments they need to make. They ARE making a strong finish, at least thus far. 1/2 game up on the Mavs, closing on the Pistons, all without Tim Duncan at the forefront. He continues to come in day after day and do his thing, however limited that might be, without complaint. That's all the Spurs can ask for.

[callo1]

As stated before, plantar faciitis doesn't go away after a couple days of resting. It's not even certain if a month or two would help because there's the chance it just might spring up again. Rasheed Wallace had it during the 2003-2004 Playoff run and he knew pain or no pain it's the Playoffs and he has to play, I'm guessing Timmy will do the samething. I doubt Pop would bench Timmy at this point in the season with the standings so close and like only a month left in the regular season.

I'm sure the rest could still help Tim in other ways. I think everyone here knows it won't make the PF go away, but it may help in other ways.

I say as long as the Spurs can have a chance home court throughout the playoffs he needs to play, simply because he can get better treatment if he is here in SA in between games than he can on the road.

[Kori Ellis]

My cousin is a Podiatrist. She says PF is pretty much a forever thing. Like, once you rupture a disk in your back, it's not gonna ever become "unruptured." But, the level of severity, ability to do things, is variable with each. Some are worse than others...some are better. I ruptured a disk in my back around 1990. After about 6 months, I was back on the basketball court...and played another 10 years.

Time will tell.

I have never heard that from anyone. (Not that I'm doubting her credentials) And I have never heard athletes having re-occuring bouts of it that cripple their careers. Most of the players I've seen have it, they have it for about six months and then they never have it again.

Maybe your cousin was talking about when someone tears their plantar (thus the comparison to a ruptured disk). But as far as I know, Timmy's isn't torn it's just aggravated.

[Jimcs50]

The good news in most cases, plantar fascitis can be treated successfully without surgery. The bad news is that ultimate success depends on a commodity often in short supply among athletes....
patience.

It may take six weeks to three months to heal, or even longer, and thats hard for bball players and runners. Why? Because runners like myself, do not want to wait that long to let it heal, and TD is the same way.

Over the offseason, if he does not play at all, he can heal.

[SouthernFried]

But as far as I know, Timmy's isn't torn it's just aggravated.

PF results from tearing of the fascia, that's what causes the "aggravation"...the micro tears resulting from stretching of the bands.

But, like most injuries, it can heal...or the body can adjust to the damage. Different shoes/insoles, exercises, medication, losing weight, etc...can all help. But, as with all tears, they must have time to heal, and increased susceptibility to further injury can result from the weakened condition.

As with most injuries, it doesn't have to be a career ending thing. But, it is something you will have to pay attention to from now on, and everyone is different. One person's herniated disk could mean career's over...while another's is just a minor setback, never to bother him/her again. Each injury is unique in it's severity, or lack thereof.

[CosmicCowboy]

It's amazing how few people seem to get this point through their heads. Does anyone know if Duncan's having the shockwave therapy again this season?

I had a bad case of PF on my right heel about 1 1/2 years ago. You guys have no idea just how painful it can be. Had the shockwave treatment...it eventually worked but took time...I was several months getting back to normal.

I seriously doubt they repeat the shockwave treatment...what it does is actually damage the tissue around the inflamed area and cause it to make scar tissue...and thus "toughening" it up and losing sensitivity. They will only damage the tissue "so far" and usually won't repeat the initial treatment if it doesn't work...

[z0sa]

I thought Timmy's shockwave therapy or whatever was pretty much brand new and not readily available to the general public......

[leemajors]

the same treatment has been used for kidney stones for a while. i imagine its availability would depend on the doctor and the doctor's access to the equipment needed for the procedure. i may be way off!

[CosmicCowboy]

Yeah...it was pretty experimental when I did it. Sure beat surgery though.

[easjer]

CC- They reported some moderate success with the shockwave the first time. And Tim played better immediately after. I remember seeing the difference. I may be wrong, but I thought I heard in a recent game that they said the pain had settled in his heel, whereas it was futher up the foot previously? I may have imagined that. . .

[CosmicCowboy]

Mine felt "a little" better after the treatment but I was pounding the hell out of it at the time...(like Duncan is)...It probably took six months for all the pain to go away and it still isn't "perfect"...I can still feel that "something" isn't right in my heel (the scar tissue) but it is much better than the "red hot ice pick" feeling from before....

[spurster]

How much rest TD needs to heal is not clear, but it's clear that TD is pretty slow on B2B games. Getting in at least one day of rest helps a little bit at least.

[td4mvp21]

I thought Duncan has looked relatively good over the past few games....a lot quicker.

[CosmicCowboy]

The PF could actually improve while still playing on it...remember...the goal of the shockwave treatment is to damage the tissue and force it to make scar tissue...and that process is still ongoing...

[Rescueone]

He needs to play to get his shot back. Where has that bank shot off the glass gone? I haven't seen it in a long while!

[cs100]

Timmy should be rested on one of the b2b games. I remember reading that Tim's FG percentage is normal when he has at least one day rest between games. It is the second of b2b that kills him/us.

[CosmicCowboy]

the bank shot was never a set shot. It was a bait/downfake, then left pivot spin, elevate, shoot...all in one smooth motion...the timing is off because his pivot and spin is off because of his foot...

[exstatic]

Timmy should be rested on one of the b2b games. I remember reading that Tim's FG percentage is normal when he has at least one day rest between games. It is the second of b2b that kills him/us.
There is little to no danger of worsening the injury, and a 70% Tim is better than anyone else we could throw out there.

[cs100]

There may not be danger in worsening the condition, but the pain on the second of b2b is more noticeable.

[Obstructed_View]

the bank shot was never a set shot. It was a bait/downfake, then left pivot spin, elevate, shoot...all in one smooth motion...the timing is off because his pivot and spin is off because of his foot...
True, but he also has taken that shot as a jumper, and it ain't going in. We'll probably see him attempt it a dozen times in a game to try to get it back before the playoffs.

[CosmicCowboy]

and trust me guys...the pain is a bitch...mine felt like I was stepping on a nail barefoot everytime I put pressure on it...and it would burn/throb by the end of the day...

Tims got some serious stones to play at NBA level on that heel...

[exstatic]

There may not be danger in worsening the condition, but the pain on the second of b2b is more noticeable.
Admittedly, but he's STILL better than anyone else we can trot out there. Makes you appreciate the 100% Duncan we've been spoiled by watching...

[E20]

The plantar isnt' even needed. He could have surgery to remove it over the off season.

[Obstructed_View]

The plantar isnt' even needed. He could have surgery to remove it over the off season.
Didn't Rasheed's finally break or something? I remember reading about that somewhere. Supposedly his pain just went away.

[E20]

Didn't Rasheed's finally break or something? I remember reading about that somewhere. Supposedly his pain just went away.
It's supposed to be some useless tissue between two tendons(?) I think. If the tissue snaps off you're gonna need surgery, but other than that I heard it's just like having sore feet 24/7.

[picnroll]

Pop said, I think it was on one of his shows, that Duncan would probably get one more shot (steroids) before the playoffs.

Maintianing flexiblility around the ankle is supposed to be one of the ways to prevent PF. I wonder if Duncan spraining his ankles, having to tape them tightly has been part of the cause.

[CharlieMac]

Absolutely.

[Joepa]

Tim will be fine during the playoffs, as there are no back to backs.

[SpursWillOwn]

It's been a long time since watching his shots off the glass.. But the scoring load now seems to be lying on Parker.. His FG% is amazing..