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Tuesday, December 19 Updated: December 29, 12:03 PM ET Simply no Magic without injured Hill By Jeffrey Denberg Special to ESPN.com |
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This is becoming the season of disaster for the contenders in the East. First the Heat loses Alonzo Mourning for the season. The 76ers' tandem of Eric Snow and Allen Iverson goes down for an extended period. Now, Cleveland has lost Zydrunas Ilgauskas, probably for the remainder of the season. But no loss has is confounding as the trials of Grant Hill, whose MRI reports are in the hands of top medical people around the country. He almost certainly will not play before the All-Star break and he may not suit up again this season if the decision is made to perform more surgery on his left ankle.
Having twice allowed Hill to call the shots on whether or not he plays, the Magic has at least contributed to the lingering weakness in his ankle that seen a $93 million commitment explode in their faces. Doc Rivers said the first week of the season that it might be wise to stop Hill until next season. The Magic should have listened. Monday, NBC paired the Magic off against defending Eastern champion Indiana, a battle between two shell teams that have fallen on mediocre times. But while the Pacers were expect to rebuild through much of the season, the Magic anticipated sharp improvement after going 41-41 in Doc Rivers' first season. They paid $93 million to get Hill and another $93 million to get Tracy McGrady. They gave up the role players who sparked them to mediocrity last season. Hill and McGrady had to be worth 10 wins right? Not exactly. Orlando had won three straight simply to get within two games of .500 before falling back Monday against the Pacers. At the same point in the schedule last season the Magic was 15-12. Reverse that today. The entire sequence of events is a mystery.
There are no real signs anyone cares all that much. Even with today's inflated crowd counts -- remember, the NBA counts tickets distributed, not fannies in seats -- and Orlando ranks 24th in the league with an average of about 13,500. Would Hill make any difference? Probably. But it may be next season before anyone knows for sure. Hill is in limbo, rehabbing as best he can, hanging out at home for the holidays. "There's no need (to go anywhere)," he said Saturday. "The pictures have been sent to every doctor in the country -- well, not that many -- but we're still gathering information, and the holidays have slowed down the process." The ankle may be immobilized in a light cast for at least a month. Surgery is a real possibility after specialists study the structure of four screws that hold two small ankle bones together. Rivers admits he is confused. "We've been playing a waiting game with him, and that's been difficult on the other guys to get them ready," Rivers said. "I already know too much about ankles now, way more than I wanted to know. Pretty soon, they'll be calling me doctor, and it's going to be true." Meanwhile, general manager John Gabriel isn't conceding that Hill can't play. He told the Orlando Sentinel last week, "Maybe this time we look at Grant keeping active by playing, taking pictures (X-rays) every week and playing minimal minutes. Maybe from the recovery standpoint, we could get a good blend there. Better than Grant watching TV and lifting weights and just doing nothing basketball-wise ... It's not an exact science." Maybe they could get a few minutes a night out of Hill. Maybe, like a thoroughbred he'd go out there and work through the hurt. Maybe, he'd reach for that little extra something. Maybe like so many thoroughbreds, he would go too hard and do serious damage to the ankle or a knee or a foot. With a talent like Hill, would you take the chance?
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"I'm not a good guy to talk personnel with right now," Karl said. "I'm so angry that I don't know if I can see my team fairly. You have to be real conservative with in-season trades. You have anger, you have depression and it clouds your ability to make decisions. "There are 100 trades that I walk in on a Monday and say, '(Expletive), get that (expletive) out of here.' I'd trade him for anybody. Then a week later, he's my best player. So for me, the best way to go is coach them, make them better and not blame it on the players or change players."
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