Here we go again: Chandler Parsons is about to miss more time.
Parsons didn’t play in the Memphis Grizzlies’ first six games as he recovered from right knee surgery. He then appeared in six straight contests, on a minutes limit, but his latest comeback is set to be stalled after he suffered a bone bruise in his left knee, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com:
Source: Chandler Parsons has a bone bruise in his left knee that could cause him to miss up to two weeks. That is not the knee that Parsons has had surgically repaired twice. The Grizzlies announced that Parsons will miss Monday’s game in Charlotte, the second straight game he will miss.
Somewhere, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is feeling even more validated in his decision not to re-sign Parsons.
The goods news for the Grizzlies, though, is this isn’t the same knee that Parsons has twice had surgically repaired. It’s a separate issue altogether, which means his rehab time shouldn’t be unnecessarily extensive.
Still, it’s tough to feel good about Parsons’ long-term value. Each of the last two seasons have been cut short due to injuries, and this latest setback, while benign in a vacuum, is beyond unsettling—especially because Parsons was still working off the rust from his first absence and hasn’t yet regained his shooting stroke.
The world knows what Parsons, a combo forward, is capable of at full strength. He can score off the bounce, serve as a secondary playmaker, drill threes and survive on defense against either forward slot. The question has never been about his abilities, or his potential value. Memphis is a playoff team if he’s on the floor, playing like he was last season before suffering his right knee injury. The Grizzlies just doesn’t know if they’re ever going to get the Parsons from Dallas. More harrowing, they don’t know if he’ll remain healthy for long enough to enjoy that Parsons if they ever get him.
