Nelson’s Comeback Far From Certain
We’re a blog, which in the eyes of heaven obliges us to comment on rumor substantial enough to have been commented on by a general manager. So, for those of you not attached to your laptops, the Orlando Sentinel is reporting that Jameer Nelson might -- I repeat, m-i-g-h-t-, meaning “there’s some chance of” -- come back for the Finals.↵
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↵While President Bob Vander Weide gushes about “the chance to get an all-star point guard on the floor for 15 minutes a game,” GM Otis Smith presents a more complex, reserved, and deflating picture:↵↵⇥Smith said Nelson had an MRI as recently as last week and has participated in contact drills.↵⇥
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↵⇥“It’s up in the air. We’ll see how Jameer looks the next few days,” Smith said. “There’s a few more things we have to get comfortable with. We’re looking at the pros and cons. Doctors will have to talk to doctors. If we’re at a place where Jameer can help us accomplish our goals, then maybe he can play and give us some more punch. [. . .] “There’s a litany of tests he’ll have to pass. His health is the main thing. We’re not going to mortgage his future.”↵↵
↵Nelson himself reiterates the concern for the long-term, in case you were wondering. Here's the thing: Nelson was fantastic in the Magic's regular season sweep of the Lakers. And if they could get that Jameer Nelson back, with an okay from doctors, and no risk of long-term harm from rushing back, it's an almost unthinkable huge boost for the team. But allow me to go out on a limb and say that the chance of all those things coming true is pretty slim. Nelson hasn't played since early February, this surgery's been called "season-ending" since the day it happened, and the phrase "litany of tests" doesn't exactly strike me as encouraging.↵
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↵Plus, what if Nelson is rusty? How does Stan Van Gundy respectfully say thanks, but no thanks, to a less-than-effective Jameer? I'm not going to go all Ewing Theory and declare that a healthy Nelson might disturb the groove Orlando has going -- Rafer Alston is a similar kind of point guard, just not as good or rock-solid. Who knows what happens, though, if he's not quite himself, or how that works politically. This has the potential to become a huge distraction, and even if Nelson does clear these medical hurdles, it might be best for the team to leave well enough alone.↵
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↵Again, unless he's one-hundred percent. Then we will know that God is truly on the side of the Orlando Magic, and not the Lakers, since Bynum has yet to fully look himself and didn't just wander back onto the active roster on a whim. ↵
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↵For more NBA coverage, visit SportingNews.com's new NBA blog, The Baseline.↵
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