monosylab1k
04-02-2007, 04:46 PM
The Pistons are screwed come playoff time...
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2822793
Wade returns to Heat practice
MIAMI -- Seeing Dwyane Wade drive toward him during a scrimmage Monday, Dorell Wright backed away, taking every precaution not to hit his superstar teammate's still-healing left shoulder.
Wade was not happy about that.
"Dorell is a great shot blocker. I saw him look at me and just jump out of the way," Wade said. "I told him, 'Ain't nothing wrong with my body.'"
Wade began trying to prove that Monday, when he returned to practice with the Miami Heat nearly six weeks after suffering the dislocation that threatened to end his season. He worked out on-court for 90 minutes, absorbing some contact for the first time, and followed that with weights and physical therapy.
Most importantly, he was pain-free, another sign he'll be able to start playing games before the playoffs.
"The fact that he's back practicing is huge," Heat coach Pat Riley said. "You go back to Feb. 23, it didn't look like there was going to be any of that stuff. So this is great."
Wade thought so, too.
The reigning NBA finals MVP was smiling and relaxed after his on-court work, even acknowledging that he may play in more regular-season contests than the "a game or two" plan he offered Sunday when announcing he'd return to practice.
For now, there is no timetable. Wade eventually will set one in consultation with the Heat medical staff and his physical therapist.
"Trust me," Wade said. "When I take the court, I'll be all right."
Miami (39-34) has nine games remaining in the regular season, one that'll be undoubtedly remembered for a plethora of injury woes. Heat players have missed 171 games this year with injuries, 66 of those by their best two weapons, Wade and Shaquille O'Neal, who've been together for only 13 starts all year.
Soon, that total will almost surely begin rising again, now that Wade's return is getting closer.
"Just happy to see him out there running and smiling," Heat guard Eddie Jones said. "I think it's a great thing to have guys together again."
Wade was averaging 28.8 points when he was hurt in a collision with Houston's Shane Battier on Feb. 21. The Heat are 13-7 since, are a half-game behind Washington in the Southeast Division and play a huge game against Toronto -- a team Miami is chasing for home-court advantage in the first playoff round -- on Tuesday.
Should Miami beat the Raptors, it'd hold the tiebreaker by winning the season series 2-1. Should Miami lose, the Heat would essentially fall four games (three in the standings, one more with the tiebreaker) behind Toronto with eight games left, meaning chances of earning home-court for Round 1 would be slim.
"It's a big game, there's no doubt," Riley said. "Our guys understand it. We know what it's about. ... It's all about positioning and seeding and home-court advantage. They know it's huge."
Wade won't play on Tuesday, but the defending NBA champions may get Jason Kapono back in the lineup.
Kapono, the NBA's leading 3-point shooter, hasn't played since spraining his left ankle against Atlanta on March 5. The team will decide his status after Tuesday morning's shootaround.
"I assume that I'm playing. I want to be out there," Kapono said. "Unless something happens from now until Tuesday night, which I don't see, I expect to be out there."
Wade is hoping to say the same soon. He'll travel with the Heat to Cleveland and Boston later this week so he can continue practicing and "learning the plays again," as he put it, and will continue rehabbing the shoulder daily to keep building strength.
"I haven't had a day off," Wade said.
Wade's biggest challenge right now, he said, is denying his risky instinct of reaching for every ball that he comes near defensively and instead using his feet to get into better position. But his explosiveness was still there on the offensive end, proven by the way he ended a 4-on-4 scrimmage with a strong dunk.
"He looked real good to me," Wright said. "He's got all the moves. Nothing's changed. He's probably just a little winded, I bet, sitting out that long. But he's been working hard every day, trying to get back."
Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2822793
Wade returns to Heat practice
MIAMI -- Seeing Dwyane Wade drive toward him during a scrimmage Monday, Dorell Wright backed away, taking every precaution not to hit his superstar teammate's still-healing left shoulder.
Wade was not happy about that.
"Dorell is a great shot blocker. I saw him look at me and just jump out of the way," Wade said. "I told him, 'Ain't nothing wrong with my body.'"
Wade began trying to prove that Monday, when he returned to practice with the Miami Heat nearly six weeks after suffering the dislocation that threatened to end his season. He worked out on-court for 90 minutes, absorbing some contact for the first time, and followed that with weights and physical therapy.
Most importantly, he was pain-free, another sign he'll be able to start playing games before the playoffs.
"The fact that he's back practicing is huge," Heat coach Pat Riley said. "You go back to Feb. 23, it didn't look like there was going to be any of that stuff. So this is great."
Wade thought so, too.
The reigning NBA finals MVP was smiling and relaxed after his on-court work, even acknowledging that he may play in more regular-season contests than the "a game or two" plan he offered Sunday when announcing he'd return to practice.
For now, there is no timetable. Wade eventually will set one in consultation with the Heat medical staff and his physical therapist.
"Trust me," Wade said. "When I take the court, I'll be all right."
Miami (39-34) has nine games remaining in the regular season, one that'll be undoubtedly remembered for a plethora of injury woes. Heat players have missed 171 games this year with injuries, 66 of those by their best two weapons, Wade and Shaquille O'Neal, who've been together for only 13 starts all year.
Soon, that total will almost surely begin rising again, now that Wade's return is getting closer.
"Just happy to see him out there running and smiling," Heat guard Eddie Jones said. "I think it's a great thing to have guys together again."
Wade was averaging 28.8 points when he was hurt in a collision with Houston's Shane Battier on Feb. 21. The Heat are 13-7 since, are a half-game behind Washington in the Southeast Division and play a huge game against Toronto -- a team Miami is chasing for home-court advantage in the first playoff round -- on Tuesday.
Should Miami beat the Raptors, it'd hold the tiebreaker by winning the season series 2-1. Should Miami lose, the Heat would essentially fall four games (three in the standings, one more with the tiebreaker) behind Toronto with eight games left, meaning chances of earning home-court for Round 1 would be slim.
"It's a big game, there's no doubt," Riley said. "Our guys understand it. We know what it's about. ... It's all about positioning and seeding and home-court advantage. They know it's huge."
Wade won't play on Tuesday, but the defending NBA champions may get Jason Kapono back in the lineup.
Kapono, the NBA's leading 3-point shooter, hasn't played since spraining his left ankle against Atlanta on March 5. The team will decide his status after Tuesday morning's shootaround.
"I assume that I'm playing. I want to be out there," Kapono said. "Unless something happens from now until Tuesday night, which I don't see, I expect to be out there."
Wade is hoping to say the same soon. He'll travel with the Heat to Cleveland and Boston later this week so he can continue practicing and "learning the plays again," as he put it, and will continue rehabbing the shoulder daily to keep building strength.
"I haven't had a day off," Wade said.
Wade's biggest challenge right now, he said, is denying his risky instinct of reaching for every ball that he comes near defensively and instead using his feet to get into better position. But his explosiveness was still there on the offensive end, proven by the way he ended a 4-on-4 scrimmage with a strong dunk.
"He looked real good to me," Wright said. "He's got all the moves. Nothing's changed. He's probably just a little winded, I bet, sitting out that long. But he's been working hard every day, trying to get back."
Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press