HoopsHype.com Columns

Amare had to try
by Eddie Johnson / April 13, 2006

Amare Stoudemire had to try. He had to see if his body could do what he had been doing so effortlessly since he picked up a basketball. He did not want to hear the pundits discussing and questioning if he should just sit out the year.  He wanted to play the game he loves.

I don't blame him. It is so easy for people to sit and determine whether someone should do this or that from afar.

None of these people were at rehab with him when he pushed his knee to the limits and saw success. They were not there when he made a certain move on the practice court and he said to himself, "Wow, no pain."

They didn't see him make his signature move and show for one instant the same explosion he thought he had lost forever.

They didn't understand that after waking up most days after rehab with soreness, those days were starting to be different the more he worked.

They didn't feel the emptiness that one feels when you can't share the success of your teammates the way you expected to.

They didn't see the encouragement from doctors and the X-rays that showed his knee was stable and ready for action.

They definitely didn't feel the pressure Amare put on himself because of the expectations coming from the large contract he signed last summer.

These thoughts and feelings are the makeup of the motivated athlete. I am talking about the athletes that are driven by playing the game and not the amount of money they make.

I truly believe that Amare is in the class of all the great ones who loved the game more than the money. And for that very reason, he wanted to come back and I applaud him.

Although it did not work out for him, I thought he needed to try. He now has a measuring stick to take with him into the summer. He now understands what he has to do to get ready. He knows now how important it is to do rehab and concentrate on getting better for next year.

I myself am not ruling out a return this season if the Suns make the Finals. I know it's a long shot, but what a story that would make.

The Suns needed Amare and he knew it more than anyone. The things the Suns lack, he provides. That's why he pushed himself back into uniform.

The Suns have very limited post-up ability and a weak presence in the middle defensively – especially since Kurt Thomas went down with a stress fracture of the foot.

Amare would have been the glue to get the Suns to the level of the San Antonio Spurs and the Detroit Pistons.

Boris Diaw, who should win the Most Improved Player award this year, has filled in as much as he can. Now Phoenix must do it by committee and hope for the best.

The Suns have a serious problem when they are not making jump shots. They will have to find someone who can give some consistent points in the painted area during the playoffs. If not, they could find themselves in a world of trouble.

Amare was the savior. His first game back against Portland gave everyone hope.

He was explosive at times and looked very confident for someone who had not played in months. But obviously, with rehab comes the constant reliance on your off leg. No matter how much you think about it, you always favor your good leg over the other.

Now Amare is back in rehab trying to get his other leg better all the while telling himself not to put pressure on the other leg – which happens to be the one that got him sent to the doctor in the first place.

Some people say Amare hurt himself more by coming back and I say he helped himself tremendously.

He not only proved his toughness, but he let his teammates know how badly he wanted back in the lineup. The Suns are better off knowing that chances are Amare will not be back this season instead of wondering and second-guessing his commitment if he had not tried at all.

That's the messed-up situation for all athletes that are battling back from injuries.

You are dammed if you do and dammed if you don't.

The Suns will get to the Conference Finals again led by Steve Nash and Shawn Marion, but along the way they have to hope and pray someone knocks off the Spurs because that is the only team in the Western Conference that can exploit the not-having-Amare factor.

With Tim Duncan, Nazr Mohammed, Rasho Nesterovic and Robert Horry, the Spurs are just too much for the Suns to deal with without Amare and a healthy Kurt Thomas in the lineup.

The Suns have proved one thing with the emergence of Boris Diaw, Raja Bell, Eddie House, James Jones, Leandro Barbosa and a hopefully re-signed Tim Thomas... If Amare Stoudemire is back and healthy next year, the Suns will be a bonafide favorite to win their first NBA title.

Eddie Johnson is a regular contributor to HoopsHype.com

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