Batum's Foot Injury

[EL PRESIDENTE]

#Blazers F Nicolas Batum dealing with right foot injury he sustained 2 weeks ago vs Boston. Has no range of motion. Will have MRI tomorrow.
-Chris Hayes Tweeter Account

 

[Strenuus]

He's just now telling people?! Agh Batum!

 

[THE HCP]

Uh oh

 

[B-Roy]

Well it explains a lot.

 

[STOMP]

I was noticing the way he was shuffling up the court in the 4th, hopefully it just requires some rest. Paging Dorell Wright...

STOMP

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

That explains why Durant and Parsons smacked him for 80 pts within 24hrs last week.

 

[illmatic99]

These things are all expected in an 82 game season. Not gonna get too worked up over this. As long as he's good for the playoffs, we should be good.

 

[maxiep]

Damnit Nico! We expect our Frenchies to be whiners and complainers. Don't mess with us by quietly suffering with an injury.

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

Unleash the Claver.

 

[Strenuus]

Unleash the Claver.

This. I was one of Dorell's last supporters.... But I dunno.

At least let Claver come off the bench.

 

[Haakzilla]

This. I was one of Dorell's last supporters.... But I dunno.

At least let Claver come off the bench.

...or! Who let the Crabbe out? Who? Who? Who!

 

[blue32]

I wish our fragile Frenchmen wouldn't continue to play through these injuries. He just hurts us more than he helps. Wrist last year, now finger and foot. Just take some rest, and let the next man go. Batum isn't our offensive juggernaut, so I don't see an issue playing Wright, or Claver, etc.

 

[illmatic99]

It's gotten to the point with Nic where guys aren't passing him the ball because they know he won't do anything with it. I saw this on a few occasions with LA/Wes/Dame last night when they had Nic open on a potential swing pass, looked at him, and decided against going to him. Get healthy, man!

 

[Rastapopoulos]

Unleash the Claver.

I second this!

 

[Rastapopoulos]

Batum isn't our offensive juggernaut, so I don't see an issue playing Wright, or Claver, etc.

He's not a scorer but that doesn't mean he's not incredibly important, as I think we'll discover.

 

[blue32]

He's not a scorer but that doesn't mean he's not incredibly important, as I think we'll discover.

I do agree, but, I think he hurts more than he helps when he plays injured and doesn't take some rest.

 

[BBert]

Every time Batum has a bad game, out come some fans to bash him mercilessly. Because, you know, fans know everything about what every player is thinking and feeling. We're all savants. Couple of poor statistical nights? He has no competitive fire. He's passive. He's lazy. Etc. Oh, he has an owie? Screw him. Suck it up. Why, when I played on a church league team, I had the same exact owie, and I rocked. Yep. Fans know everything. [/end Monday morning rant]

 

[BBert]

I do agree, but, I think he hurts more than he helps when he plays injured and doesn't take some rest.

I agree with this. I've never liked players playing through injuries. It's a long season. Unless its the playoffs, or you are about to miss them, stop aggravating it and get healthy.

 

[Schilly]

An issue I have with Batum is he has a tendency to try to play through injury. Normally this is a good thing, but unfortunately in Nico's case it usually impacts his level of play, then compounds the length of recovery time.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

Joe Freeman ‏@BlazerFreeman MRI results for Nicolas Batum's right ankle are negative. He's listed as probable for the #Blazers Tuesday night game against Memphis.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

[video=youtube;bv26dLnbi9g]

 

[Strenuus]

Joe Freeman ‏@BlazerFreeman MRI results for Nicolas Batum's right ankle are negative. He's listed as probable for the #Blazers Tuesday night game against Memphis.

Rest. The. Foot. Take the week off! :MARIS61:

 

[benh7777]

If Portland coaches and management were smart then we wouldn't see Nic until Jan 3rd and the upcoming road trip.

I would much rather take our chances without Nic against Memphis and Toronto than without Nic in the playoffs.

 

[BLAZER PROPHET]

Unleash the Claver.

Go home now.

 

[BBert]

Honestly, just freaking play Wright or CJ or "The Claver" or some combination thereof. Nico is great, but a bit fragile. Favoring his ankle, playing without balance, is going to put more stress on other components of his skinny frame and increase the probability of other injury, let alone aggravating the ones he has.

 

[PapaG]

Honestly, just freaking play Wright or CJ or "The Claver" or some combination thereof. Nico is great, but a bit fragile. Favoring his ankle, playing without balance, is going to put more stress on other components of his skinny frame and increase the probability of other injury, let alone aggravating the ones he has.

I agree. Potentially losing a few games before the break is less important that keeping Batum healthy for the playoffs. Start with CJ and a small line-up, and if that doesn't work, put in either Wright or Claver. Make Tayshaun Prince score against Wes Matthews, and if that happens, then rotate in one of the SFs and put CJ off the bench for the rest of the game.

 

[Bob Dobalina]

Unleash the Claver.

I second this!

I third it!

 

[ponderguy]

 

[noknobs]

I agree. Potentially losing a few games before the break is less important that keeping Batum healthy for the playoffs. Start with CJ and a small line-up, and if that doesn't work, put in either Wright or Claver. Make Tayshaun Prince score against Wes Matthews, and if that happens, then rotate in one of the SFs and put CJ off the bench for the rest of the game.

If they do end up resting Batum for awhile, I think we'd definitely miss him, however it would be a good opportunity for some of the guys you mentioned to gain confidence with more extended playing time, which isn't the worst idea in the world. OKC, for example, is going to be much better off having guys on the bench who know they can step up and win when called upon. The team itself now knows they can win without their 2nd best player. The coach knows better who he can rely on, etc. Same with the Spurs when they rest their stars. This makes the team stronger and deeper in the long run.

Portland got their current record due to fortunate health and consistency with the starting five, but in a way that can be a curse in disguise. If the first bit of tough luck comes near the end of the regular season or in the post-season, nobody (even the team) knows how they'll respond. So a little adversity I think is a good thing over the course of a season, as long as we're healthy and clicking if/when we get to the playoffs.

 

[blue9]

I'd even consider starting Robinson at SF. He has the quickness. And think of him crashing the O-Boards with Lopez blocking out and Dame/Wes/LMA bombing from the perimeter!