Longtime Spurs point guard and future hall of famer Tony Parker is rehabbing his torn left quadriceps this off-season, an injury he suffered against the Rockets in the western conference semi-finals last season.
While initial prognosis for the injury was for Parker to return around or even after the all-star break, Parker has said numerous time he expects to back back in January and now teammate Danny Green is hinting that he may be on track to be back even sooner than that…
“He (Tony Parker) obviously had a tough injury last year but he’s recovering. He’s a couple of months ahead of schedule… I don’t want to leak anything but he might be playing a lot sooner than people think he’s playing.
“He’s been doing his rehab like a monster, like a maniac. He’s been working out like a maniac and mentally he’s really focused and trying to get his body healthy and get it right. You’ll probably be seeing Tony playing a lot sooner than what most people expect him to be back by.”
It would be pretty incredible if a 35-year-old Tony Parker were able to recover way ahead of schedule for a serious injury like this, but if he truly is working out like a maniac it seems as though he could be back before the end of 2017.
Parker struggled last season and has lost a few steps from his prime as one of the fastest players in the NBA, but he was playing his best basketball in the postseason before the injury and his return would be a nice boost to a team that sorely needs depth at the point guard position.
At this point Mills may be better than Parker on a nightly basis, but having his leadership, ability to lead the offense and get in the paint on nights when Parker does have it clearly makes the Spurs a better team overall.
The Spurs will be fine with Mills at the helm to start the season and second year guard Dejounte Murray will be thrown into the fire, but Parker coming back sooner rather than later only helps the Spurs maintain their status as a top two to three team in the hotly contested western conference.
