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CALL UP Hairston, and Ian. Let's give the Rookies some playoff expierience!
In a flash, Ginobili's season finished
By Jeff McDonald
The second-to-last time I talked to Manu Ginobili, we were in the post-game locker room in Indiana.
I asked him the same question I'd asked maybe a dozen times since his second recovery from ankle surgery, the normally innocuous, "How are you feeling?"
Ginobili leaned back in his chair, propped his feet up on a box setting in front of him and, for the first time, seemed completely confident in his comeback.
"I'm happy, man," Ginobili said. "I played 36 minutes for the first time this year, and I'm feeling good. I still don't feel very confident going hard to the rim, but I'm energetic. I'm happy about it."
Four days later, out for the season. Done in by a stress fracture in his right ankle.
It's amazing how quickly the apocalypse happened, how quickly the future changed for both Ginobili and the Spurs.
The very last time I talked to Ginobili, it was in the hallway of Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland on Sunday . He had slipped out of the locker room without talking to reporters, which in retrospect should have been a telling sign. Ginobili always talks.
Buck Harvey, the Express-News columnist, and I bird-dogged Ginobili on the way to the bus. We talked mostly about the state of the Spurs, what needed to happen for the team to have a shot in the playoffs. Yada, yada, yada.
It was only at the end of this brief interview that Buck asked the question.
"How are you feeling?"
That's when Ginobili told us he was on his way to meet with the team's medical staff. His ankle had stiffened up on him during the game in Cleveland. He wanted to get it checked out.
Just to be safe.
"I just want to see if it's normal or not," Ginobili said.
Gauging from his tone and body language, Ginobili did not expect to get the news he eventually got. He expected to get a wink and a nod, and be cleared to play.
But the stiffness was not normal. It was the result of a stress fracture.
Had it not been for his previous history of ankle trouble, Ginobili said, he wouldn't have thought twice about the stiffness. Now, he's out for the rest of the season, and the entirety of the playoffs.
The Spurs' season is broken, too. They can't be logically considered a championship contender anymore. Not without Manu.
They might be able to win a first-round series without Ginobili. But not the whole she-bang.
For Ginobili, and for the Spurs, it is a frustrating end to a frustrating season.
Last edited by duncan228; 04-06-2009 at 10:12 PM.
CALL UP Hairston, and Ian. Let's give the Rookies some playoff expierience!
macdonald is a negative nancy. we still have the heart of a champion.
GO SPURS GO!!
What's up with McDonald calling our season over already? Damn..I know the odds are WAY against us, but anything can happen.
Thanks for the update Duncan228!
The odd number year championships have reached their end
McDonald pretty much nailed it.
Props
Doomsayers, bandwagoners and emo fans, take note:
Shut up, and off.
Yeah the season is pretty much toast and all u can do is hope holt let's the spurs pay out the full MLE. Problem is the mle needs to be spread throughout three spots.
We can easily beat teams like the rockets without Ginobili, I don't even think he played one game against them this year. We can also beat the trailbazers even though they have speed.
Doomsayers, bandwagoners and emo fans, take note:
Shut up, and off.
Oooohhh, a real tuff girlie boy we have here! Get lost, Punk!
Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt the whining. I'll be rooting for the Spurs while you're crying about your lost season.
Interesting he reinjured his right leg playing against LeBron. He also reinjured his left ankle on a play against LeBron in the lane in the Olympics.
Mcdonald is just calling it like he sees it...can't blame him for pointing out reality.
I actually think he thought he could play through it (I mean the pain, before learning it was a fracture). I'm glad Pop just called it quits and he sits until he heals.
Ya gotta love little Big Mouths like you....you know punkass girlieboyz who think they are so tuff. Did you beat up the fat kid on your Elementary School playground today? Boy I bet you were thumping that sunken in chest of yours! ROTFFLMFAO@U!!!
what a ing dirty player james
Holy .
Stern would probably approve of us taking for the 9th seed, just to keep us out of the playoffs.
I would approve of that also...it would mean we could get our first rounder back.
2009 playoffs dedicated to our fallen brother..
Jeff McDonald is right, and I totally agree with him as far as the post season goes... The Spurs have no chance to win the le this year (unless Kobe gets hurt, or LBJ/Howard) We can still beat the Celtics!
Manu Is a big huge part of our success... He plays with heart and it carries it over to the team, Whenever we see a healthy manu with total confidence, the spurs DOMINATE.
Tim&Tony can only do so much, and the addition of Gooden helps out alot, Pop just needs to find a way to fit Gooden and Bowen back into the rotation somehow, and stop giving MINS to JV and UDOSUCKS!
And for Mr. Jeff McDonald, I enjoy reading your articles... keep up the good work! And TRY TO ASK POP WHY ISNT HE PLAYING BOWEN, AND ALSO TO ASK WHY IS HE GIVING UDOKA MINS?
If you do this, you will be EPIC.
Thanks for reading,
Actually, I thought you would say Manu had just used a Windows Vista PC the very same day as both injuries.
Windows Vista ... LOL Combined with IE it really sucks. At least Mozilla Firefox makes it bearable to a degree. You'd think Billy Boy would at some point in time make a product worry of him and his ilk making the $Billion$ they've made over the years.
ie 8 SUCKS
ie 7 is always crashing on vista
!
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