Terrible News For The Suns
Amar’eNot that I’m a genius or anything, but I know that when I file my taxes I talk to an accountant, and when I have medical issues I talk to a doctor. And for Amar’e Stoudemire, I’m sure he’s busy talking to both.
After Stoudemire was first given the diagnosis after All-Star Weekend that he was going to miss the rest of the regular season, behind inspired play from his teammate Shaquille O’Neal, he had his sights (no pun intended) on the playoffs. But apparently the next playoffs STAT will be playing in is in 2010.
“Not this season, not at all,” said Dr. Pravin Dugel, the Valley eye surgeon who operated on Stoudemire’s detached retina two weeks ago. “The Suns have the same goal – to make sure he can resume his career.
“It’s very difficult to explain to anyone how serious this is. It’s more serious than any knee or ankle surgery. The healing is excruciatingly slow and delicate.”
Stoudemire suffered multiple tears, new and old, and had a “very large” and “traumatic” retina detachment with blood in his right eye at the time of surgery. There was hope of a return to activity in eight weeks, but Dugel said the recuperation could take months.
“Now it’s a matter of just waiting for his body to resorb the fluid,” Dugel said. “So far, it’s resorbing slowly.”
The only way to accelerate resorbing of the thick fluid is through surgery, which would require a gas bubble that could cause a cataract.
On thing that is interesting from both a medical and team standpoint is that Stoudemire is not allowed to attend Suns games, although he has expressed interest in doing so. Dr. Dugel says that it is dangerous for his eye to be susceptible to any jarring, and that staying away from the team is the best way to fully recover.
But even after the eye heals, Stoudemire’s future is up in the air. The fact that he was being shopped so heavily for the weeks heading up until the trade deadline suggests that STAT is no longer part of Phoenix’s future plans. And as a free agent at the end of next season, with two major surgeries to his name, despite his age, talent and potential, it might be hard to get a team to invest in him long-term.
What can the Suns do the rest of the season without Amar’e?
Source: The Arizona Republic
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March 6th, 2009 at 11:01 am
the_don_mega says:
the same thing they’d be in if he’s with ‘em… early playoff exit… what’s up with that mug anyway?
March 6th, 2009 at 11:03 am
Spliff 2 My Lou says:
I guess all the teams that tried to trade for Amare before the deadline lucked out.
March 6th, 2009 at 11:10 am
rob stewart says:
hear comes the Stro Show
March 6th, 2009 at 11:12 am
QQ says:
@ post 1:
100% agreed. Only that they might even fail to reach the playoffs even with him in the lineup.
March 6th, 2009 at 11:24 am
SJ says:
@Spliff 2 My Lou
His eye injury was a freak accident that would never have happened had he been traded. The other teams didn’t luck out, they actually could have picked up a great player for a good price. This sucks for Phoenix and more so for Amare. He better have a good agent.
March 6th, 2009 at 11:33 am
Spliff 2 My Lou says:
@SJ
Yeah but if it happens to be a career ending injury or he’s out for most of next season how did those teams not luck out? Any team interested in his services can now wait it out. After microfracture surgery and an serious eye injury his stock is vastly diminished. Now a team can get him really cheap.
I didn’t want Amare to go to the Bulls even before he had this eye injury. I surely don’t want him after.
March 6th, 2009 at 11:36 am
Spliff 2 My Lou says:
Also I thought I heard that his eye injury was something that had been a long time forming? I may be wrong but I don’t think it was just a freak accident.
March 6th, 2009 at 11:52 am
Bron42 aka Had springs before slamball says:
better call up horace grant and dust off the eye gear
March 6th, 2009 at 12:01 pm
Poppi GEE says:
Dang and he might have to rock a mask after this is said and done.
He needs to go to Golden State. That is the only place I can see his career having substance after this.
March 6th, 2009 at 12:02 pm
Poppi GEE says:
Hornets might be a good look if they get tired of Tyson.
March 6th, 2009 at 12:22 pm
karizmatic says:
Finish ninth in the West out of the playoffs. Or maybe eight if Shaq keeps playing possessed. The best scenario for them is to finish 9th and somehow win the lottery next year, sign a blue chip rookie, hope Shaq doesn’t fall off and hope Amare does come back 100%. In short that’s a lot of hoping.
March 6th, 2009 at 12:26 pm
SJ says:
@Spliff
I hadn’t heard of any previous eye injuries. He got poked, which caused the detached retina. Not sure about previous condition.
I don’t think the other teams lucked out. Stat wasn’t fitting into the new Phoenix system (but who in Phoenix was anyway??), and the team was looking to get rid of him as he was no longer in their plans. They seemed pretty damn desperate to trade him out, which can usually net a great deal for another team. Now, with the serious injuries under his young belt, he’s gonna have a tough time finding a home when his contract is up.
March 6th, 2009 at 12:41 pm
Pig says:
Why the hell did he take the goggles off?He had an eye injury earlier this season..Stupid
March 6th, 2009 at 12:43 pm
Prof. TX says:
They weren’t going to win the West anyway, so while the post-season might be less fun for the Suns fans, it will still end the same way. They’re still missing something before being a legitimate contender again.
March 6th, 2009 at 12:53 pm
Kermit the Washington says:
OMG that’s horrible. I feel bad for dude, ESPECIALLY because he made the stupid mistake of taking the goggles off. He regrets that now.
And the suns better hope they don’t end up in a first-round match-up with the Spurs. They lose to them again, and they will all explode at the final buzzer.
March 6th, 2009 at 1:02 pm
hahns says:
i feel real bad for him….microfracture and now this???
guy was a BEAST before surgery…athletic monster who dunked every ball he caught w/in 12 feet of the basket. now who knows? coulda been a hall of famer imo.
March 6th, 2009 at 1:05 pm
George W Kush Sr says:
I can see CP3 and Stoudamire fitting in nicely. Even with Rose in Chicago
March 6th, 2009 at 1:23 pm
Prof. TX says:
On a normal team, the fans could at least be happy that if they miss the playoffs they could still get a good lottery pick. Phoenix just has to stop trading away picks for that to happen.
March 6th, 2009 at 2:06 pm
doc says:
Holla back.He injury prone.
March 6th, 2009 at 4:09 pm
kennypayne says:
he got sick of shaq trying to take all the shine in phoenix. was probably pissed when he didn’t get traded away from shaq … honestly amare and dwight were on the same level and i thought amare would exceed him as a beast, but d-howard doin big things right now, while amare gotta defer to shaq. i’m sure its killin him
March 6th, 2009 at 11:29 pm
trips says:
He’s a pussy for not taking doc’s orders and wearing goggles. Have a good career Stoudemire. Or is it had?