He says that he started sprinting today and he felt a little discomfort because he was fatigued, but that it's to be expected and he's going to continue doing sprints for the next few days. He plans on starting contact drills soon and if that goes well then he'll know that he's ready. He also said he's started dunking and he thinks he still has all of his explosiveness.
Now sprinting and even dunking the basketball, Amaré Stoudemire is in the home stretch of his rehabilitation from microfracture surgery.
If he remains on track, he could be ready for a full-speed practice with his Suns teammates within two weeks.
While the Suns returned to practice Monday after a light weekend, Stoudemire began the final noncontact week of rehab with half-court, full-speed sprints on the sidelines before shooting free throws, jumpers and even adding a dunk to end the day. Another MRI will follow, which if it is shown to be unremarkable, will clear him for one-on-one and two-on-two contact drills early next week.
“If he can do that — it’s close, it’s real close,” Phoenix coach Mike D’Antoni said. “After that we’re talking about a full practice. We’ll let him go and see where he is.
“We’re probably looking at about another month and we’ll be ready to go.”
A month from today, the Suns will be in Seattle playing the Sonics. But the next night, March 15, Phoenix is home for a showdown against the second-place team in the Pacific Division, the Los Angeles Clippers — a game that could serve as a juicy target date for Stoudemire if all goes according to plan.
Stoudemire, who had surgery on his left knee on Oct. 11, said he felt some initial discomfort during the sprints and fatigue afterward (”I expected it, it was my first day”) and remains cautious when it comes to putting a timetable on his return.
“I’m a little rusty right now as far as moving around the basketball court. It’s been five months,” he said Monday. “I don’t want to do too much. I want to take my time with the physical contact. I’m not ready to put a window out there just yet. It’s a matter of healing up, and only God is in charge of that.”
D’Antoni repeated what has been said for months — that regardless of what the doctors and trainers say, the final decision on when to play will be Stoudemire’s.
“We’ll know when he tells us, ‘I’m ready to roll.’ That’s what we’ll be listening for,” D’Antoni said. “We have a week of no contact, an MRI, a week of contact and then practice. After that, the only thing left is playing.”
“I'm just honored to play for the Jazz and to play after John Stockton, to wear the same jersey he wore and be on the same floor he was on because he's one of the best players of all-time, one of the best point guards of all-time" Derron Williams - Utah Jazz
