Western Conference Just Got Some Help...

[JR2004]

From Bryant who just crashed into Bynum's knee as he fell on a drive to the hole and either gave him a sprain or more than likely ended his season. When a man that big yells that loud for as long as he did that probably means his season has just ended. It's odd that both times it's been a teammate that's gave him a freak injury and both times it's been against Memphis.

[eagles_victory]

Originally posted by JR2004
From Bryant who just crashed into Bynum's knee as he fell on a drive to the hole and either gave him a sprain or more than likely ended his season. When a man that big yells that loud for as long as he did that probably means his season has just ended. It's odd that both times it's been a teammate that's gave him a freak injury and both times it's been against Memphis. Except for the Defensive Tackle from Alabama who got rolled similarly to that and was crying and was only out for 3 weeks.

[Emerson1]

Or Paul Pierce who had to be carted off then came right back

[JR2004]

During the post-game interviews he said he yelled out of fear of having the same injury from last season. Then again he was optimistic last year about returning in early April and didn't play again until this season. I guess he'll find out for sure when he visits his doctor in New York today whether he tore ligaments or if it is indeed just a sprain. Oh well at least this time around we already have an All-Star that can step into the position seamlessly instead of having to go trade for one.

The upside is that this means Dacos can finally be unleashed again if he's going to be out for awhile!

[JR2004]

Yep this sounds about right. I'll look forward to seeing him in training camp next year.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3879472

Lakers' Bynum to miss 8-12 weeks

Associated Press

NEW YORK -- Los Angeles Lakers center Andrew Bynum will miss eight to 12 weeks after tearing the medial collateral ligament in his right knee.

Bynum was hurt in the first quarter of Saturday night's win at Memphis. Kobe Bryant drove to the basket, missed the shot and crashed into Bynum's right leg. Bynum immediately grabbed his knee.

Bynum is the Lakers' third-leading scorer and second-leading rebounder, averaging 14.0 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.9 blocks.

The 7-foot, 285-pound Bynum's injury brought back bad memories of last season for the Lakers. He went down in mid-January and was expected to be sidelined eight to 12 weeks after bruising a bone in his knee and briefly dislocating his kneecap.

Instead, he missed the final 46 games of the season, as the Lakers lost in the NBA Finals. He underwent arthroscopic surgery May 21 to remove cartilage debris and smooth some rough spots on the underside of his kneecap.

"This is a team that went to the Finals last year that we put on the floor, so they're confident in what they can do," coach Phil Jackson said at the Lakers' shootaround Monday afternoon, before they announced the severity of the injury. "We know we're going to miss his presence, his rebounding ability. But this is a very capable team."

The injury came as the 21-year-old seemed to be taking a major step forward in his fourth NBA season. In the five games before he was hurt, he was averaging 26.2 points, 13.8 rebounds and 3.2 blocks and shooting 65.3 percent from the field.

"It changes our team, and the rhythm that we're playing with," Bryant said at the shootaround. "Obviously we found a great rhythm there with him in the lineup, particularly the last week or so. So we're going to have to make some adjustments."

Bryant insisted the Lakers could still win a title without Bynum.

"There are teams that lost in the Finals that go back and win the next year," he said. "I think having Andrew in the lineup makes us a dominant team. With him out of the lineup, we're still a great team. You put him in the mix, it takes us to another level."

[big daddy russ]

I'll take it.

I thought '07 was gonna be our last year as champs. It's an odd-numbered year, we found a couple of players who can fill it up, and our two old men in the Big Three are healthy.

Well, nix that. Timmy looks good. Manu's playing a little slow, but should be ready by the playoffs.

JR, this is gonna be a fun WCF!

[JR2004]

Originally posted by big daddy russ
I'll take it.

I thought '07 was gonna be our last year as champs. It's an odd-numbered year, we found a couple of players who can fill it up, and our two old men in the Big Three are healthy.

Well, nix that. Timmy looks good. Manu's playing a little slow, but should be ready by the playoffs.

JR, this is gonna be a fun WCF!

I think you're right Russ. This year's Western Finals should be much more entertaining than they were last year! After the last game where everyone was healthy I thought that the West Finals might be a re-run of last year, but no Bynum levels the playing field to a degree.