Chip Patterson, recent graduate of University of North Carolina -Chapel Hill, writes for TheHoopDoctors.com and BusterSports.com. A lifelong student of the game, he has passionately followed the NBA and College Basketball since C-Webb was calling “Timeout!”.
After plenty of jokes about Danny Granger getting the Paul Pierce Wheel Chair treatment for a “sore foot” off the team plane yesterday, the news goes from humorous to down-right depressing for Pacers fans. It turns out that the injury on Sunday was the final straw in an ongoing problem.
Granger, who has been bothered by the heel bruise since the preseason, aggravated the problem early in the third quarter Saturday night in the Pacers’ 88-72 loss to the Clippers in Los Angeles. On a drive into the middle, he pulled up lame, lost the ball and dropped to the floor. He was helped off the court by trainers Josh Corbeil and Carl Eaton and did not return to the game.
The results of that MRI led the Pacers to announce Tuesday that Granger will miss a minimum of four-to-six weeks with a torn right plantar fascia (the tissue that supports the arch of the foot). “No surgery will be required,” said the advisory issued by the team, “and rehabilitation begins immediately.”
[via Pacers.com]
This is TERRIBLE news for a Pacers team that has lost 9 of it’s last 10 games. When Granger (averaging 24.4 ppg) returns to the lineup, the Pacers might have played their way right into the John Wall Sweepstakes.
The Pacers fan base was already restless, and I have a hunch that seeing more of Jeff Foster and Tyler Hansbrough is not what is going to sell tickets — even in Indiana. This bumps Duke alums Dahntay Jones and Mike Dunleavy into the roles of “primary scorers” for the Pacers. Dunleavy averaged 19.1 ppg in the 2007-2008 season, but has failed to stay healthy enough to find a rhythm since. Jones, having his best offensive season of his career is now the number one threat for the Pacers.
Granger’s absence won’t just be felt on the offensive end, but also off the court. As the lone All-Star, Granger brought about the right mix of talent and star swagger to keep the fans and media entertained. Between the losing streak and losing Granger, Coach Jim O’Brien’s seat is getting hotter by the second.
