From 48minutesof - Playing Without an ACL

[Obstructed_View]

The guy I called is an orthopedic surgeon. He e-mailed me a couple of links this evening - one from the Orthopaedic Journal at Harvard Medical School, and the other from the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. But what the , they're probably all quacks.

And Super Bowl champions have teams of guys who can't read an MRI.

He said that it is possible that the comment about scar tissue being re-absorbed, etc. was because Blair had an allograft done on his knees, where they take tendon from a cadaver to repair the torn ACL. And that it is fairly common for them to "not take", leaving the person ACL deficient. He said that he can't imagine any surgeon simply removing the torn ACL and then recommending that he continue to play compe ive basketball.

In the case of Ward and Blair, both situations were discovered some time later. There's never been any mention of a doctor removing anything, and no recommendation as the discoveries were made while the player was playing at a high level.

And, for the record, he mentioned Hines Ward. He said that Ward is a very unusual exception for being able to compete like he has. But he has played through tremendous pain, and has gone through stretches where he was on the field but not really able to perform. AND he has had surgery for a torn meniscus. The reason he brought Ward up to begin with is because the doctor said that he "had no ACL", when what he meant was that he had torn his ACL. And that statement has led people to spread the myth that Ward was born without an ACL in one knee.

I've never heard the suggestion that Ward was born without an ACL. He was in an accident when he was a kid. There was a story about it in ESPN the magazine.

Ward may have complications, but he's played well enough to become the Steelers all time leading receiver, has won a Super Bowl MVP and is still playing NFL football at a high level ten years into his career, not including three years playing three positions at Georgia. If he's the example, then I'm not backing away from my statement that Blair is more than worth the risk of a mid-second round pick.

[Ariel]

Interesting quotes:

http://espn.go.com/trainingroom/s/2000/0209/345747.html

Some players may choose to avoid surgery and simply strengthen the leg through rehabilitation exercises (most often hamstring strengthening exercises). NBA basketball star Sean Elliott, of the San Antonio Spurs, partially tore his ACL when he was 14. He has competed successfully without surgery. People generally can walk and run without an intact ACL, but sudden cutting and twisting is often difficult. For this reason, most high-level football and basketball players who wish to continue competing may be better served having a torn ACL reconstructed. Studies show that more than 50 percent of players with a torn ACL will have recurrent problems with swelling and collapse of the knee. These problems can lead to cartilage damage and eventual arthritis in the involved knee.

http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.c...95/3/index.htm

A damaged ACL doesn't have to be fixed—players are now competing successfully in the NBA with damaged ACLs. Anthony Daly, the Clippers' team physician, says, "You can lead a normal life without an ACL, but you can't play a cutting sport like basketball." San Antonio Spur forward Sean Elliott tore part of his ACL when he was only 14. Surgical reconstruction wasn't done at the time because it would have interfered with the growth of the bones in his knee. He still has more play in his knee than normal, but why correct that and take away a year of his promising career when he performs as well as he does?

[TDMVPDPOY]

super glue that now....

[EricB]

I knew people on the forum wouldn't be happy with the Spurs getting a lottery talent at the 37th pick.

Damn, epitome of some people are never happy.

[Tully365]

The reason he brought Ward up to begin with is because the doctor said that he "had no ACL", when what he meant was that he had torn his ACL. And that statement has led people to spread the myth that Ward was born without an ACL in one knee.

Sean Elliott is part of that myth too.

[BackHome]

Another player I forget his name but he played for the Chicago bears had the same surgeries and he was starting offenseive line player for the bears for a few years. He talked about how he increased his strength in his quad and glutts to compensate for the knees.

[SnakeBoy]

My wife's a doctor. I asked her about it and she said "I'm a internist, how would I know?".

I'm no doctor, but this sounds like a very poorly understood translation of whatever it was the Doctor actually said.

Maybe the doc said the acl got re-absorbed and scar tissue developed to stabilize the knee. That would make more sense to me.

I had a psycho pit bull that tore both acl's. The vet tried a synthetic replacement but the first time we let her out she took off after something and blew them both out again (2k wasted). The vet then said to just keep her inside and hope that enough scar tissue developed to stabilize the joints. Took awhile but that's what eventually happened and she was perfectly normal for 10 years after that and could still out run my other dogs.

[lefty]

Like RC said, we have a great team of doctors. Let's hope he understands he has to keep his quads and hammys strong or else

Lakers doctors >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Spurs docs

[raspsa]

We can only hope for the best. He will be in good hands. Going thru a couple of college BB seasons is great but the wear and tear of the NBA regular and postseason are far more gruelling.

[DJB]

I eats my ACLs.

[mingus]

i have a feeling that the doctors who work for the Spurs have the same exact sentiment regarding his knee issues as all the others, which is that it's in a pretty abysmal state . Spurs picked him because they desperately needed a big after trading away their others in the Jefferson trade, not neccessarily because they see the current status of his knee more favorably IMO . i don't expect much from him.

[wut]

The Spurs only have a short window left anyway right? ....on top of the fact that he's a lottery talent for peanuts.

There's no risk here...even for Dejuan Blair, he gets to play for a great team and prove his worth.

No pressure situation for anyone.

[ulosturedge]

He will be fine... the guy has played throughout college with no issues. We are just looking for as much immediate return type players as we can find atm. If we get 2 or 3 solid seasons from him then we made out big.

Whats more important is that we got a guy who feels like he's one of the best. This guy is going to come in with a better mindset and confidence then we got from Hill last summerleague. He has the tools already.

I'd take a guy who knows he can compete with the best of them with some suspect health issues over a guy who just has some upside potential but hasn't proven much and isn't sure how he compares.

We did great with our 37th pick. It was the right gamble considering our needs and our timetable for competing for a few more championships.

[lotr1trekkie]

Iniatially, Blair is not expected to go 35 a game. He may in fact be limited to 20/g. On tape he seems to run laterally and jump vertically just fine. As long he doesn't want to do "Superman" dunks he might be fine for a long career. I look forward to him setting picks to Tony and Manu!!!!

[SonOfAGun]

Squats and deads homie. If he is forced to work his legs he should have a very strong base to push around other post players.

[Sobe_Kucks]

I am no doctor but I am typing without any hands right now....

Just like everything else we'll have to wait and see. Can't see our FO wasting a pick on a guy that they know isn't going to b able to play in the NBA. If he can ball, let's let him ball!

[hater]

who cares? dude will give it his all until he has bloddy stumps for legs. That won't be for a while