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<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Richard Jefferson doesn't like sitting and watching, unless of course he's in front of a TV and "Family Guy" is on.
Jefferson hated being a spectator for the Nets' past five games. But Monday the small forward was no longer one of the highest-paid cheerleaders in the league. Jefferson was back in the lineup when the Nets began their four-game West trip against at Seattle.
Talk about a quick recovery.
Ten days ago, Jefferson suffered a Grade 2 sprain of his left ankle when he came down on Shaquille O'Neal's size 23 sneaker. One source said he would miss four to eight weeks, while another said two to four weeks, but both were optimistic because of Jefferson's history of playing through injuries or returning quickly from them.
Despite a bad bruise from the sprain, Jefferson went through the morning shootaround Monday as a test. He passed and rejoined the Nets at a time when they sorely needed him.
Top reserve Cliff Robinson, who has a sprained left knee, is out indefinitely. Robinson flew commercially Monday and met the team in Seattle. He likely won't play Wednesday at Portland and his status for the remainder of the trip is unclear.
But the current state of affairs didn't force the Nets to play Jefferson, who came off the bench for the first time since his rookie season in 2001-02.
The medical staff has been holding back Jefferson for precautionary reasons. If it were up to Jefferson, though, he would have been playing sooner.
"He wants to play, which is a good thing," coach Lawrence Frank said before the Nets tried to avenge a 119-113 loss to the Sonics last week at Continental Arena.
"At the same time we want to make sure that we're not putting him in a position where it's a redundant deal and it's going to cause further pain."
Before Portland trounced the Nets on Saturday, Jefferson was frustrated that he couldn't play. He felt he was ready, but the Nets wanted to play it safe and rest Jefferson a little longer
Jefferson was playing on a mildly sprained right ankle before he injured his left. The Nets were concerned if he came back too soon, he may compensate for one of the ankles and do further damage to the other.
"I don't know what I'm allowed to do," Jefferson said Saturday. "Whenever they tell me I'm able to do something, I try it. When they tell me I can do something, then I'll do it."
Jefferson's stubbornness comes from being a quick healer and having a high pain threshold.
He played for three weeks with a ruptured ligament in his left wrist during the 2004-05 season. He would have kept playing if the Nets didn't think surgery was necessary.
He also played on a badly sprained right ankle in the playoffs in May.
"He has recovered remarkably well from some of the things he's had," Nets president Rod Thorn said. "He's, thankfully, a quick healer."</div>
Source
Jefferson hated being a spectator for the Nets' past five games. But Monday the small forward was no longer one of the highest-paid cheerleaders in the league. Jefferson was back in the lineup when the Nets began their four-game West trip against at Seattle.
Talk about a quick recovery.
Ten days ago, Jefferson suffered a Grade 2 sprain of his left ankle when he came down on Shaquille O'Neal's size 23 sneaker. One source said he would miss four to eight weeks, while another said two to four weeks, but both were optimistic because of Jefferson's history of playing through injuries or returning quickly from them.
Despite a bad bruise from the sprain, Jefferson went through the morning shootaround Monday as a test. He passed and rejoined the Nets at a time when they sorely needed him.
Top reserve Cliff Robinson, who has a sprained left knee, is out indefinitely. Robinson flew commercially Monday and met the team in Seattle. He likely won't play Wednesday at Portland and his status for the remainder of the trip is unclear.
But the current state of affairs didn't force the Nets to play Jefferson, who came off the bench for the first time since his rookie season in 2001-02.
The medical staff has been holding back Jefferson for precautionary reasons. If it were up to Jefferson, though, he would have been playing sooner.
"He wants to play, which is a good thing," coach Lawrence Frank said before the Nets tried to avenge a 119-113 loss to the Sonics last week at Continental Arena.
"At the same time we want to make sure that we're not putting him in a position where it's a redundant deal and it's going to cause further pain."
Before Portland trounced the Nets on Saturday, Jefferson was frustrated that he couldn't play. He felt he was ready, but the Nets wanted to play it safe and rest Jefferson a little longer
Jefferson was playing on a mildly sprained right ankle before he injured his left. The Nets were concerned if he came back too soon, he may compensate for one of the ankles and do further damage to the other.
"I don't know what I'm allowed to do," Jefferson said Saturday. "Whenever they tell me I'm able to do something, I try it. When they tell me I can do something, then I'll do it."
Jefferson's stubbornness comes from being a quick healer and having a high pain threshold.
He played for three weeks with a ruptured ligament in his left wrist during the 2004-05 season. He would have kept playing if the Nets didn't think surgery was necessary.
He also played on a badly sprained right ankle in the playoffs in May.
"He has recovered remarkably well from some of the things he's had," Nets president Rod Thorn said. "He's, thankfully, a quick healer."</div>
Source
