The Memphis Grizzlies had just completed an impressive four game west coast sweep when starting center, and reigning defensive player of the year Marc Gasol went down with a knee injury.
That was seven weeks ago.
Gasol was impressive in his return Tuesday night, hitting a contested 30 ft shot over Kevin Durant late in the fourth quarter to help Memphis secure the victory. But more impressive was the way the Grizzlies organization handled Gasol's injury, both internally and externally.
You don't have to work in Vegas to understand the importance of injuries when it comes to sports, especially when it's a star player. Wins, losses, even jobs often hang in the balance. It's also reasonable to expect status updates on players from the media. But some organizations take it too far, often with disastrous results. Translation....
A closed mouth can't be misquoted.
Or as we say in the south...dang, you talk too much!!!
Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls organization immediately comes to mind. Ahhh, D-Rose' infamous 2012 knee injury. Whether it was Rose himself, head coach Tom Thibodeau, or brother Reggie, we were constantly provided conflicting information on Rose's status, and pending return date. I know it drove Bulls fans crazy! Even Rose' teammates could offer little help, and you can tell it began to wear on them at the end of the season. Derrick could have put a stop to it himself, but his passive aggressive approach (I suppose in an attempt to please everyone) only made matters worse. His public image still has not fully recovered.
The Washington Redskins offered us plenty of material to misquote, in their handling of star qb Robert Griffin III and his knee injury. Head coach Mike Shanahan was negligent by naming Griffin the week one starter, even though he had not played a snap in preseason. RGIII must not only share the blame, he should completely own it...with all of the off season bellyaching about being held back by the coach and training staff. It was as if Shanahan grew tired and said..."ok...go on out there then and get busted up". And guess what? That's exactly what happened. Griffin was clearly not ready to return...the man could barely run. Even the team doctor said he had nothing to do with it. Wait...wait...but you're the doctor...how could you not know..?!!?!
Let me digress on that one.
Shanahan lost his job and RGIII lost his confidence as a result. Completely bizarre.
Meanwhile...back in Memphis....
Credit the Grizzlies organization for keeping Gasol's rehab and pending return in house. And it's not like the local media didn't poke and prod. When Marc did speak, which was rare, he only spoke of progress...and no time table. Head coach Dave Joerger maintained his "out indefinitely" assessment, before completely shutting the topic down all together. And let's keep in mind that Memphis started piling up the losses in Gasol's absence, dropping to as low as second to last in the Western Conference at one point. And there were grumblings in the Bluff city...trust me. Especially with last year's trip to the Western Conference Finals still fresh in everyone's mind. Last night, unbeknownst to the fans, Marc Gasol was introduced in the starting lineup...to an ear popping standing ovation. Memphis fans were not teased and toyed with regarding Gasol's return. Judging from the atmosphere in FedEx Forum last night, as well as the tone of today's talk shows, it was applauded and appreciated.
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