TP's heel - shut him down?

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

So, there have been reports about bone spurs on TP's heel, which for mine explains his inconsistency, recent lack of explosiveness, and preference for the jumper over penetration.

1) how long would it take to recover from a operation to remove the bone spurs?

This source says 3 weeks to be walking again:

http://www.podiatrynetwork.com/document_disorders.cfm?id=153

This one says 6-8 weeks for full recovery:

http://www.seafordfootcare.com/problems_heel.html

Of course, it all depends on the specifics of Tony's problem.

2) would it be wise for Tony to have the operation now, with hope of being back in March?

It looks like he's opting to play through it, but can our team win another banner with Tony at 70%?

[SenorSpur]

Yes. He needs to rest. I don't know why Pop is pushing this issue. If he had settled on a 3rd PG, perhaps this wouldn't have been such an issue by now.

[101A]

It's not his heel.

Tony started playing like crap right after that French model claimed he banged her.

[AFBlue]

Probably playing him out of necessity, but with Barry back maybe he'll get some burn at the point.

Obviously though, they don't think it's a big enough issue to shut him down or they'd have done it already.

[sa_kid20]

I think we would be ok without Tony until March but if Tim or Manu go down in that stretch then we're screwed. If he can play through it i would rather he just do that but eventually there is gonna be a cut of point where if he has the surgery he won't be back for the playoffs so if it is really that big of a problem he should just get it fixed now.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

Probably playing him out of necessity, but with Barry back maybe he'll get some burn at the point.

Obviously though, they don't think it's a big enough issue to shut him down or they'd have done it already.

Was thinking the same thing - he's obviously said he'll play through it - but with Barry back they now have more options at the point.

I brought it up because they'd better do it now and get it over with so he can be back to full speed by late March, or we'd better get used to an inconsistent TP again because lingering injuries like this rarely just go away by themselves...

[BonnerDynasty]

Someone should tell him to rest b/c It's only January.

[Hemotivo]

It's not his heel.

Tony started playing like crap right after that French model claimed he banged her.
:madrun

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

:madrun

Please don't feed the trolls by quoting them... :lol

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

101a has a point

If you believe tabloid crapola.

If you think about the fact that Parker is less than a year married to Eva, and the likelihood that he'd screw that up by sleeping with some model when he already has a very attractive wife, then you call bullshit and look at the real problem which would affect his explosiveness and has been covered extensively and that is his heel.

[exstatic]

Those recovery times are probably for the average person to function and walk, not to play NBA ball. If you do the surgery, you can likely write him off until next year.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

Those recovery times are probably for the average person to function and walk, not to play NBA ball. If you do the surgery, you can likely write him off until next year.

Yeah, I thought about that, but there's the flipside whereby NBA players get the best surgeons and intensive rehab that shortens their recovery times. For example, a grade 2 ankle sprain would put you or I out for a month, these guys it's a week. However, what you say makes sense in that he hasn't had the operation. Maybe it's like plantar fascitis, something you can play through with pain that won't degenerate.

[remingtonbo2001]

Yeah, I thought about that, but there's the flipside whereby NBA players get the best surgeons and intensive rehab that shortens their recovery times. For example, a grade 2 ankle sprain would put you or I out for a month, these guys it's a week. However, what you say makes sense in that he hasn't had the operation. Maybe it's like plantar fascitis, something you can play through with pain that won't degenerate.

Tim had a grade 2 ankle sprain in 2005. How long was he out?

Granted, that was pretty severe. The assertion NBA players heal quicker is true, in most part due to superior facilities and medical professionals. An example: Tim used a hyperbaric oxygen chamber when coming back from his ankle injury. This cut his healing time in half. I'm sure they are given various anti-inflammatories and suppliments, more specific to their injury, whereas the public usually goes with whatever is cheap and generic.

Tony's injury doesn't really compare with plantar fascitis. A heal spur is more of a dull, nagging pain, whereas plantar fiscitis is comparable to a stabbing sensation at the middle arch of the foot. In other words, plantar fiscitis hurts a hell of a lot more. From the people I've asked, it usually goes away after a few weeks. However, it can reoccur at anytime. That being said. I wouldn't push Tony so hard, but if it is a more naggin heal spur, then I would elect to have surgry in the off-season. THERE IS NO REASON FOR TONY TO UNDERGO SURGRY AT THIS POINT IN THE SEASON. That would be rediculious. It's not really going to get any worse. He just needs to take it easy.

[Kori Ellis]

It's not his heel.

Tony started playing like crap right after that French model claimed he banged her.

Really seriously, STFU with this kind of talk.

Thanks.

[Kori Ellis]

I think we would be ok without Tony until March but if Tim or Manu go down in that stretch then we're screwed. .

Records show otherwise.

[Kori Ellis]

Yeah, I thought about that, but there's the flipside whereby NBA players get the best surgeons and intensive rehab that shortens their recovery times. For example, a grade 2 ankle sprain would put you or I out for a month, these guys it's a week. However, what you say makes sense in that he hasn't had the operation. Maybe it's like plantar fascitis, something you can play through with pain that won't degenerate.


Tony might not even need surgery. He might have a couple bone spurs that can go away with medication/therapy. Not everyone gets surgery for bone spurs.

[m33p0]

so much of the team's early offense and fast break relies on TP. if the operation is delayed, he'll be alot more hampered come playoff time. but if he does take the operation now and his recovery is delayed, the spurs will be hard put to find a suitable replacement to cover the things TP does. the spurs, however, will be better off taking the lesser of the 2 evils and have TP have the operation now and hope for an early recovery.

[Findog]

If he plays poorly in the playoffs with bone spurs, does that make Tony a soft pussy choker?

[Kori Ellis]

so much of the team's early offense and fast break relies on TP. if the operation is delayed, he'll be alot more hampered come playoff time. but if he does take the operation now and his recovery is delayed, the spurs will be hard put to find a suitable replacement to cover the things TP does. the spurs, however, will be better off taking the lesser of the 2 evils and have TP have the operation now and hope for an early recovery.

Assuming he needs an operation at all.

[m33p0]

Assuming he needs an operation at all.
hopefully not.

[Findog]

If you play on bone spurs in the playoffs and you're not as effective as you normally would be, then you're a soft pussy choker. Am I right, guys?

[SouthernFried]

Not to make matters worse...but, Tim seems to be hobbling out there as well. It looks like he's trying to cover it up, but there is a limp coming from somewhere.

[duncan228]

Not to make matters worse...but, Tim seems to be hobbling out there as well. It looks like he's trying to cover it up, but there is a limp coming from somewhere.

Duncan seems banged up.

He's worn a sleeve on his left knee a few games, today he was icing that knee on the bench. (His left knee is the one he had surgery on, not the one he hurt earlier this season.)
He's worn a sleeve on his elbow, and his right wrist/thumb was taped last game.

I haven't found anything that says what's going on. I'm not surprised, the Spurs, and Duncan, like to keep this stuff in house. I assume he's just banged up, typical for this time of the season and the beating he takes underneath every game. But I've never seen him wear so many wraps. I hope it's pro-active.

[Kibic]

Beno?

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

remington, Kori, thanks for the info on bone spurs. That's why I started the thread! :tu :)

Sounds like he's just going to have to play through it.

[Southwest Texas Fan]

Tony might not even need surgery. He might have a couple bone spurs that can go away with medication/therapy. Not everyone gets surgery for bone spurs.


Good point Kori my wife has an uncle who is taking medication to dissolve a heel spur. Question is with the way these athletes put a strain on their bodies would that treament be effective.

[WalterBenitez]

that spurs hurts like a shit, I beg TP decide well about that

[ancestron]

Sit him down. Let him heal. He's not playing like himself. Without a healthy Tony Parker, winning another championship will be extremely difficult. Let Brent/Jacque/Manu run the point until Parker is 100%.
Better to lose some regular season games because of no Tony Parker than playoff games.

[Findog]

Sit him down. Let him heal. He's not playing like himself. Without a healthy Tony Parker, winning another championship will be extremely difficult. Let Brent/Jacque/Manu run the point until Parker is 100%.
Better to lose some regular season games because of no Tony Parker than playoff games.

Let's say his bone spurs are still really bothering him and hampering his effectiveness come late April. If he were to give it a go and try to play through it in the money season, would that make him a soft pussy choker? Even if he wasn't as productive as he normally was?

Playing through a painful injury that limits what you can do in the playoffs = soft pussy choker. Right?

[telecomguy]

Let's say his bone spurs are still really bothering him and hampering his effectiveness come late April. If he were to give it a go and try to play through it in the money season, would that make him a soft pussy choker? Even if he wasn't as productive as he normally was?

Playing through a painful injury that limits what you can do in the playoffs = soft pussy choker. Right?

let's face it, he is a bit of a choker. And anyone who thinks his jumper is going to magically become Nashisque is dreaming....if you haven't got it after 6 years in NBA you just don't have it. I am afraid he will never really be the quaterback of the Spurs due to his lack of ability to pass and "see" the court. Luckily we have Gino and TD to help move the ball and score in the crunch time, but TP is good for the beginning of the game when the opponents havent quiet settled down yet and figured out how to clog the paint.

[Findog]

let's face it, he is a bit of a choker. And anyone who thinks his jumper is going to magically become Nashisque is dreaming....if you haven't got it after 6 years in NBA you just don't have it. I am afraid he will never really be the quaterback of the Spurs due to his lack of ability to pass and "see" the court. Luckily we have Gino and TD to help move the ball and score in the crunch time, but TP is good for the beginning of the game when the opponents havent quiet settled down yet and figured out how to clog the paint.

That wasn't really what I was getting at. Nobody on this board has yet answered the question. Let's just say that there was another player that got bone spurs late in the season last year and played through it and wasn't as effective as he normally was, and his team lost in the first round and he was heavily criticized for his performance. He was called a choker even though he gutted it out and played because his team had no chance to make a deep playoff run without him, and for this he was derided as soft and lacking in leadership abilities.

[telecomguy]

Sit him down. Let him heal. He's not playing like himself. Without a healthy Tony Parker, winning another championship will be extremely difficult. Let Brent/Jacque/Manu run the point until Parker is 100%.
Better to lose some regular season games because of no Tony Parker than playoff games.

I am afraid you are expecting too much from Tony. Tony is what he is. He has played this poorly in the past for long stretches. He had a very good finals last year but i don't think we should expect him to play like that all the time. He will contribute and he will continue to improve but when he gets shut down, we need to stop relying on him and TD/Gino has to become more assertive because TD/Gino has the most talent on the team and should naturally be leading the team, not Tony who really should be the scoring guart/penetrator when the opportunity presents itself.

[telecomguy]

That wasn't really what I was getting at. Nobody on this board has yet answered the question. Let's just say that there was another player that got bone spurs late in the season last year and played through it and wasn't as effective as he normally was, and his team lost in the first round and he was heavily criticized for his performance. He was called a choker even though he gutted it out and played because his team had no chance to make a deep playoff run without him, and for this he was derided as soft and lacking in leadership abilities.

honestly, i don't think his bone spurs are bothering him that much. And I still don't understand how bone spurs (assuming he has a serious case) would affect his jumpers and ability to pass.

[remingtonbo2001]

That wasn't really what I was getting at. Nobody on this board has yet answered the question. Let's just say that there was another player that got bone spurs late in the season last year and played through it and wasn't as effective as he normally was, and his team lost in the first round and he was heavily criticized for his performance. He was called a choker even though he gutted it out and played because his team had no chance to make a deep playoff run without him, and for this he was derided as soft and lacking in leadership abilities.

Sorry Findog, we don't really have an example to go by. In 2005, Tim managed to play through two severe ankle sprains, and delivered a championship. It would be different for Tony, considering he isn't the face of the franchise, as great a player as he is.

[duncan228]

Findog, did Dirk have bone spurs last year?

[Findog]

Findog, did Dirk have bone spurs last year?

Yes.

[duncan228]

Yes.

Was there any press about it? I don't remember hearing anything about him being hurt.
Did I miss it?

[Findog]

Was there any press about it? I don't remember hearing anything about him being hurt.
Did I miss it?

It happened a month before the playoffs started in a game against Milwaukee:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=270328006

The team didn't publicize it very much, just like they downplayed Damp's torn rotator cuff. Avery doesn't like to make excuses.

[duncan228]

It happened a month before the playoffs started in a game against Milwaukee:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=270328006

The team didn't publicize it very much, just like they downplayed Damp's torn rotator cuff. Avery doesn't like to make excuses.

Keeping things under wraps sounds familiar...

So the point here is that Dirk got called out as a choker but he was actually hurt and not able to do more than he did.

It puts a new spin on it, that's for sure.

I wonder why his being hurt wasn't made common knowledge after they lost. I get that the team didn't want to make excuses but I would think it would have come out somewhere.

[Findog]

Keeping things under wraps sounds familiar...

So the point here is that Dirk got called out as a choker but he was actually hurt and not able to do more than he did.

It puts a new spin on it, that's for sure.

I wonder why his being hurt wasn't made common knowledge after they lost. I get that the team didn't want to make excuses but I would think it would have come out somewhere.

I think that comes from Avery and not Cuban. There were a myriad of reasons that the Mavs lost to Golden State, but not having your best player at 100% was one of them. And if you watched the Warrior series, it was clear that Dirk wasn't nearly as aggressive as he was in the previous playoffs. It had nothing to do with being "afraid" of the Warriors.

On the other hand, Duncan threw up 32 and 15 on plantar fasciitus (spelling?) against the Mavs in 06. I've never had bone spurs, but I have had pf. It hurts like hell but you can play with it. You can plant and cut like you normally would, it just hurts like hell, depending on the severity.

[duncan228]

I think that comes from Avery and not Cuban. There were a myriad of reasons that the Mavs lost to Golden State, but not having your best player at 100% was one of them. And if you watched the Warrior series, it was clear that Dirk wasn't nearly as aggressive as he was in the previous playoffs. It had nothing to do with being "afraid" of the Warriors.

On the other hand, Duncan threw up 32 and 15 on plantar fasciitus (spelling?) against the Mavs in 06. I've never had bone spurs, but I have had pf. It hurts like hell but you can play with it. You can plant and cut like you normally would, it just hurts like hell, depending on the severity.

Dirk was certainly not himself in the Warriors series. I had no idea that he wasn't healthy until just now. Like I said, it puts a different spin on it.

Duncan played that whole season with the Planter Fasciitus. His performance in the Mavs series was incredible, but in the end he had nothing left in the overtime. I've always believed that it was the wear of the entire season that helped him run out of gas in that final 5 minutes. It was too much to push through any more.

It seems that Dirk was dealing with the bone spurs for some time before the playoffs, I think that it would wear on his ability to play.
I remember thinking Dirk really disappeared when his team needed him most. If I had known he was hurt it may have changed that thought. I tend to admire players who can push through it and be there for their team.

Interesting. I'm going to have to let this settle.

[T Park]

So bone spurs is the reason he hid from the ball in game 6?

[Findog]

Bone spurs is the reason he didn't play very well beginning the last part of the season. His "slump" started well before the Golden State series. He took 13 shots in the game, he averaged 17 on the season. He didn't play in the fourth quarter because the game was over. Does 13 shots in 3 quarters strike you as hiding from the ball?

[DazedAndConfused]

I don't get why the Spurs just don't rest TP. They can still win at a .500 clip with Vaughan starting, why risk further injuring a player you are gonna need at 100% for the playoffs.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

let's face it, he is a bit of a choker. And anyone who thinks his jumper is going to magically become Nashisque is dreaming....if you haven't got it after 6 years in NBA you just don't have it. I am afraid he will never really be the quaterback of the Spurs due to his lack of ability to pass and "see" the court. Luckily we have Gino and TD to help move the ball and score in the crunch time, but TP is good for the beginning of the game when the opponents havent quiet settled down yet and figured out how to clog the paint.

Hmmmm... I seem to remember him knocking down the 18fters pretty reliably last year, and especially during the playoffs, peaking in the Finals. The Finals MVP is a choker? I think not. Time after time he made big 18fters from the elbow against the Cavs.

I've looked at his hotspot chart for this season and he's shooting about 40% from midrange, except at the top of the key where he's cold. Because he finishes so well (61% close to the basket), overall he shoots 49%, however only 26% from 3 so he should really confine that to the corners only at this stage.

I think his game is being affected by the injury, and you're being way to harsh on him. He was one of the top 3 point guards in the NBA last playoffs, and unhampered by injury he can be that again.

[ancestron]

Tony Parker is a great player. His heart and physical toughness is taken for granted imo. Where many players wilt under Pop's militaristic tirades, Parker developed. It seems some Spurs fans will just never like him for whatever reason. He has his good nights and bad nights like anyone else, but he has gotten better and more consistent as his career has progressed, and that's what its all about.

[remingtonbo2001]

On the other hand, Duncan threw up 32 and 15 on plantar fasciitus (spelling?) against the Mavs in 06. I've never had bone spurs, but I have had pf. It hurts like hell but you can play with it. You can plant and cut like you normally would, it just hurts like hell, depending on the severity.

From what I've gathered, plantar fiscitus is more of a sharp stabbing pain, which is provoked by planting the foot firmly and/or jumping. A heal spur is more of a nagging pain, which is constantly there, like a jammed finger. I imagine it slows Tony down slightly, but I feel it would affect his focus more so. It's hard to focus and get into a groove when you are dealing with constant pain.