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12-22-2007, 06:22 PM
http://www.miamiherald.com/594/story/352618.html
ALONZO MOURNING
Zo's knee injury worse; career likely over
The Heat center had season-ending surgery on Thursday for a torn patellar tendon and a torn quadriceps tendon.
Posted on Fri, Dec. 21, 2007Digg del.icio.us AIM reprint print email
BY MICHAEL WALLACE
[email protected]
JEFFREY M. BOAN / EL NUEVO HERALD
Heat center Alonzo Mourning sits dejected on the bench as the Heat falls behind the Wizards by double digits in the first half, Thursday, Dec. 13, 2007. On Wednesday, Mourning tore two tendons in his knee, and injury that will most likely end a storied career.
Greg Cote's blog | Ranking Zo among the giants
Commentary: Zo has no business coming back
Carter, Nets outlast Heat in overtime
Heat coach Pat Riley envisions Heat center Alonzo Mourning returning to the lineup for Game 7 of the NBA Finals against the Spurs and blocking Tim Duncan's shot to win the series.
''I told him that in my dream he will make a remarkable comeback,'' Riley said Thursday. ``If you keep that image in your mind, if it ever came true, you know it was meant.''
That would require a heck of a comeback for Mourning and the Heat. The last subject anyone involved with Mourning wanted to discuss Thursday night was his retirement. But that appears to be the likely scenario after Mourning had season-ending surgery Thursday to repair two torn right knee tendons.
Speaking in somber tones before Thursday's game against the Nets, Riley said Mourning's injury turned out to be worse than first expected.
Mourning, 37, injured his right knee when he planted to block a shot in the first quarter of Wednesday night's 117-111 overtime loss to the Hawks in Atlanta. Mourning refused to be wheeled off the court on a gurney and instead limped off with the help of two teammates.
It's that same proud and defiant spirit that had many of his teammates, coaches and opponents hoping for the best for Mourning, even as he faces a strenuous recovery process.
''I don't wish it would have happened to somebody else, but I wish it wouldn't have happened to him,'' Heat center Shaquille O'Neal said. ``I've lost a brother. I've lost a partner. I've lost a bodyguard. Alonzo is to me what Robert Horry is to Tim Duncan. Without him, I wouldn't have four [championships].''
Mourning's injury was first said to be a torn patellar tendon. But the team said Thursday that he also required surgery to repair a torn quadriceps tendon, which connects the kneecap to the lower thigh.
Riley said Mourning would support the knee with a hard cast for a month and then switch to a soft cast for another month. After that comes six months of rehabilitation. Mourning's could face limitations in his treatment because he is a 2003 recipient of a kidney transplant.
Heat team physician Dr. Harlan Selesnick performed the two-hour surgery at Doctors Hospital in Coral Gables.
HARSH REALITY
Mourning, who has said this would be the final season of his 15-year career, seemed resigned Wednesday night that the injury would likely end his potential Hall of Fame career.
''I've been through a whole lot worse than this,'' Mourning said after the Hawks game. ``But it's disappointing to think that my career will end this way. But there's so many more other things that life has to offer for me.''
Mourning had considered retiring after the Heat's 2006 championship season to work full-time with his charity foundation. But he decided to come back to help the team defend its title. He considered walking away again after last season's disappointing 44-38 finish and first-round playoff exit. He came back again, hoping to help the Heat return to title contention. But the Heat's struggles have continued this season, and it is off to one of the worst starts in franchise history. Miami fell to 7-19 after Thursday's loss.
Mourning is a seven-time All-Star and two-time NBA defensive player of the year. He is ranked 10th in league history in blocked shots and holds Heat records for games, points, rebounds and blocks.
WORTHY OF FAME
Nets forward Richard Jefferson, a former teammate of Mourning's during his brief stop in New Jersey, said Mourning deserves to be in the Hall of Fame because he ranks among the best centers of his era.
''If you combine that, and look at it that he lost some of his best years because of his sickness, he's in the mix,'' Jefferson said Thursday. ``He was one of the fiercest competitors, almost to a detriment. He was the centerpiece of a great organization.''
Because Morning's contract expires in June, and because his injury occurred after Nov. 30, the Heat does not qualify for an injury exception that would allow it to add a player at half of Mourning's $2.8 million salary for the rest of this season.
The Heat does have its unused $1.8 veterans bi-annual exception to work with, but Riley said immediate help must come from within. Reserve center Mark Blount, acquired from Minnesota in the Oct. 24 trade with Ricky Davis, and Earl Barron will share Mourning's spot as O'Neal's primary backup, with power forward Udonis Haslem handling the role when the Heat goes to a smaller lineup.
O'Neal and Riley said Mourning seemed upbeat after the surgery.
''I won't let him retire in his mind because he won't,'' Riley said. ``Zo defies the odds. This man has a spirit that can never flatline. It's always erupting. We're going to miss that.''
ALONZO MOURNING
Zo's knee injury worse; career likely over
The Heat center had season-ending surgery on Thursday for a torn patellar tendon and a torn quadriceps tendon.
Posted on Fri, Dec. 21, 2007Digg del.icio.us AIM reprint print email
BY MICHAEL WALLACE
[email protected]
JEFFREY M. BOAN / EL NUEVO HERALD
Heat center Alonzo Mourning sits dejected on the bench as the Heat falls behind the Wizards by double digits in the first half, Thursday, Dec. 13, 2007. On Wednesday, Mourning tore two tendons in his knee, and injury that will most likely end a storied career.
Greg Cote's blog | Ranking Zo among the giants
Commentary: Zo has no business coming back
Carter, Nets outlast Heat in overtime
Heat coach Pat Riley envisions Heat center Alonzo Mourning returning to the lineup for Game 7 of the NBA Finals against the Spurs and blocking Tim Duncan's shot to win the series.
''I told him that in my dream he will make a remarkable comeback,'' Riley said Thursday. ``If you keep that image in your mind, if it ever came true, you know it was meant.''
That would require a heck of a comeback for Mourning and the Heat. The last subject anyone involved with Mourning wanted to discuss Thursday night was his retirement. But that appears to be the likely scenario after Mourning had season-ending surgery Thursday to repair two torn right knee tendons.
Speaking in somber tones before Thursday's game against the Nets, Riley said Mourning's injury turned out to be worse than first expected.
Mourning, 37, injured his right knee when he planted to block a shot in the first quarter of Wednesday night's 117-111 overtime loss to the Hawks in Atlanta. Mourning refused to be wheeled off the court on a gurney and instead limped off with the help of two teammates.
It's that same proud and defiant spirit that had many of his teammates, coaches and opponents hoping for the best for Mourning, even as he faces a strenuous recovery process.
''I don't wish it would have happened to somebody else, but I wish it wouldn't have happened to him,'' Heat center Shaquille O'Neal said. ``I've lost a brother. I've lost a partner. I've lost a bodyguard. Alonzo is to me what Robert Horry is to Tim Duncan. Without him, I wouldn't have four [championships].''
Mourning's injury was first said to be a torn patellar tendon. But the team said Thursday that he also required surgery to repair a torn quadriceps tendon, which connects the kneecap to the lower thigh.
Riley said Mourning would support the knee with a hard cast for a month and then switch to a soft cast for another month. After that comes six months of rehabilitation. Mourning's could face limitations in his treatment because he is a 2003 recipient of a kidney transplant.
Heat team physician Dr. Harlan Selesnick performed the two-hour surgery at Doctors Hospital in Coral Gables.
HARSH REALITY
Mourning, who has said this would be the final season of his 15-year career, seemed resigned Wednesday night that the injury would likely end his potential Hall of Fame career.
''I've been through a whole lot worse than this,'' Mourning said after the Hawks game. ``But it's disappointing to think that my career will end this way. But there's so many more other things that life has to offer for me.''
Mourning had considered retiring after the Heat's 2006 championship season to work full-time with his charity foundation. But he decided to come back to help the team defend its title. He considered walking away again after last season's disappointing 44-38 finish and first-round playoff exit. He came back again, hoping to help the Heat return to title contention. But the Heat's struggles have continued this season, and it is off to one of the worst starts in franchise history. Miami fell to 7-19 after Thursday's loss.
Mourning is a seven-time All-Star and two-time NBA defensive player of the year. He is ranked 10th in league history in blocked shots and holds Heat records for games, points, rebounds and blocks.
WORTHY OF FAME
Nets forward Richard Jefferson, a former teammate of Mourning's during his brief stop in New Jersey, said Mourning deserves to be in the Hall of Fame because he ranks among the best centers of his era.
''If you combine that, and look at it that he lost some of his best years because of his sickness, he's in the mix,'' Jefferson said Thursday. ``He was one of the fiercest competitors, almost to a detriment. He was the centerpiece of a great organization.''
Because Morning's contract expires in June, and because his injury occurred after Nov. 30, the Heat does not qualify for an injury exception that would allow it to add a player at half of Mourning's $2.8 million salary for the rest of this season.
The Heat does have its unused $1.8 veterans bi-annual exception to work with, but Riley said immediate help must come from within. Reserve center Mark Blount, acquired from Minnesota in the Oct. 24 trade with Ricky Davis, and Earl Barron will share Mourning's spot as O'Neal's primary backup, with power forward Udonis Haslem handling the role when the Heat goes to a smaller lineup.
O'Neal and Riley said Mourning seemed upbeat after the surgery.
''I won't let him retire in his mind because he won't,'' Riley said. ``Zo defies the odds. This man has a spirit that can never flatline. It's always erupting. We're going to miss that.''