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It's not as simple when pondering the possibility of Jermaine O'Neal shutting it down in Indiana.
After undergoing knee surgery following last season, the perennial All-Star hobbled around this year. Playing on one leg, JO averaged 15.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks in 33 games before it was reported over the holiday weekend that he would miss at least two weeks to recover from a bone bruise in the same knee. In other words, the dude's knee isn't totally healed-just like Gilbert Arenas-and he's starting to worry about the next five years as opposed to the next five months.
I can't even blame JO for considering a shutdown at midseason after what I saw last spring, when he valiantly played on the bad knee until it gave out on him. It literally pained me to watch him play. He nearly averaged a triple double when you consider winces per game. No one would have said a word if JO had played the 'knee card' and shut her down. But he didn't do it. He went down bailing water from the Pacers' sinking ship.
And when you factor in the Arenas situation, in which he caused a setback to his surgically repaired knee by working too hard to return (how unfair is that?), it has to give JO much pause to think he might be doing long-term damage as he plays.
Check out some recent quotes from JO in the Indianapolis Star and draw your own conclusions:
"Over the last two years I've dealt with the knee situation. I tore the meniscus and last year I played, obviously, more than I should have. That took an effect."
"The fact of the matter of it is, since the surgery I haven't recovered. I shouldn't have started camp when I started, which was the first day."
"(Playing at) 60 percent may be causing me to shorten my career and beyond that. It could have a major effect on my health. From all the painkillers, the injections, being able to walk. I walk with a limp now at 29 years old because the knee is so irritated in so many different areas."
"I want to apologize to my teammates, coaching staff and the fans because I know it's important for me to be out there. In order for me to have a shot on getting back to a respectable level that I'm used to playing at, I have to take time off."
"Taking the nine pain relievers a day has affected me in such a major way, to the point that I had to take a test to see how my liver is holding up. The pain I played with has been extraordinary."
damn.....basically J.O's been gutting it out for the past 2 seasons........ I could tell watching him play this season he was playing hurt, but I didn't know it was this bad....... Dude should have taken the timeto heal his knee instead of coming back so soon..... Dude is a warrior and stand up leader and its sad to see how much his knee has affected him
