Chris
Well-Known Member
Like many of you, I have gone through all of the stages of grief over the past few days since hearing about Dante's injury. Listening to the usual Jazz-related podcasts has reinforced the idea that this hurt is being felt by many in Jazz Nation. In trying to look for something positive to get us through this, I realized that there really was no positive take on this situation out there. So, I got to creating one. Here are some reasons for us not to be depressed about this injury:
1. ACL surgery and recovery is light years ahead of where it used to be. There was a time where if a player tore his ACL, it was almost assumed that he'd never be the same again. Not only is that not usually the case anymore (as I'll discuss later), the process is more successful, scientific, and predictable than it ever has been.
2. The Jazz are still going to be really, really good. While the team will most certainly miss the young Aussie, the rest of their team is still intact [knock on wood] and is actually better than they were for much of last year. Hayward made strides last season. Hood was a Draft Day steal and is much better now than at this time last year. Rudy Gobert is a beast and might just be an All-Star within two years. Favors certainly improved in '14-'15 and will likely continue to do so. Burks is back and is not dealing with an injury that has nagged him since coming into the League.
3. The list of athletes who have come back from ACL surgery and actually gotten better is impressive. Consider this list of NBA players who came back from this injury:
Al Jefferson
David West
Baron Davis (before even coming to the NBA)
Kyle Lowry (before even coming to the NBA)
Ron Harper
Sean Elliot (before even coming to the NBA)
Mark Price
Al Harrington
And NFL players:
Tom Brady
Adrian Peterson
Rob Gronkowski
Darrelle Revis
Jamaal Charles
Wes Welker
Carson Palmer
Philip Rivers
Jerry Rice
Logan Mankins
Von Miller
Eric Berry
Frank Gore
Edgerrin James
Donovan McNabb
And that's just ACL (or MCL too). It's not other major injuries like microfracture, tendons, etc that have their own success stories. While there are certainly players who have never returned to form, at least we know there's a good list of those who have, and that it's a distinct possibility in this modern age of medicine. And you can bet that Dante will be well cared for, if the Jazz organization has anything to say about it.
4. We'll have plenty to watch without having to focus on Dante's notable absence. Tibor Pleiss, Trey Lyles, Bryce Cotton, and Raul Neto will be fun to watch develop this season. Furthermore, we (and the rest of the NBA) will have an entire season of seeing, once and for all, whether Trey Burke has what it takes to rise to the challenge of being a capable floor general. I can't imagine that we will have any doubt whether Burke has it after an entire season (in his third season, mind you) of running the point in a starting role. No matter what he does, we should have a definitive answer about Trey Burke going forward. If a trade is on the horizon after this season (depending on how his backups do and whether or not Trey is replaceable by committee), it may increase Burke's trade value and net us something decent in return.
5. Dante could be ready to return in time for a playoff run. I'm not saying I think it's a good idea, but the recovery time from ACL surgery, from what I understand, could be around 8 months. That would be a few weeks before the playoffs begin, assuming Exum has his surgery now and recovers within a reasonable period of time. Seeing as how the Jazz organization tends to be risk averse, especially with someone as important to the franchise's future as Dante is, I doubt they would risk it for the sake of a playoff run with limited upside (this season). But, hey -- the possibility's still there. So you're tellin' me there's a chance...
6. Bryce Cotton and Raul Neto will get some important minutes. Obviously, we'd rather have Exum on the floor and their minutes be limited, but that's not happening. At least we get to really see what these guys can do, in a backup role to Trey Burke. Both PGs give different looks and it will be interesting to see how Quin uses their skill sets.
7. Exum didn't contribute much offensively last season. While he certainly did contribute on defense -- and the Jazz were much better with him on the floor -- we won't miss his scoring from last season. Having Burks back alone will do wonders to increase our scoring capability. Of course, we were hoping to see Exum's PPG go up significantly this year, but I'm sure the Jazz can pick up the scoring slack without him this one season... Which leads me to my next point.
8. The Jazz will circle the proverbial wagons and rally around this. One thing that the Jazz have already instilled in this group is that they are a TEAM. This is not some hodgepodge Land-Of-Misfit-Toys, as some of our teams have been over the last 10 years. You saw them stick around this summer. You heard about them working out day in and day out. You saw them support each other at Summer League. This is a good group of players and a good group of young men, who are growing together and truly care about working on their individual games. They will find a way to get better, even though they are down one of their premier players.
9. We still have Quin Snyder. If we had Ty Corbin, we'd be in deep trouble. But we don't. We have one of the best up-and-coming coaches in the league and he will work around not having Dante on the floor. Quin also has a great staff, let's not forget. At the end of the day, our coach might be our greatest asset -- especially this season.
10. Dante will be ready to go by the time we're ready to make a deep playoff run in '16-'17. The cake will continue to bake, even though one of the key ingredients won't be added until just before it's served. I think we can all agree that Exum's physical development this year will be arrested, but the other players will continue to progress. He'll be watching film all year. He'll be at almost all of their games and practices, and will be getting tutored by Quin all season long. He just turned 20, he's already got the fundamentals, and his basketball IQ will continue to increase. Once Dante's in decent enough shape to lift, he will -- and he will become even stronger. When he's fully recovered, he'll be relentlessly hitting the court. And then he'll return.
1. ACL surgery and recovery is light years ahead of where it used to be. There was a time where if a player tore his ACL, it was almost assumed that he'd never be the same again. Not only is that not usually the case anymore (as I'll discuss later), the process is more successful, scientific, and predictable than it ever has been.
2. The Jazz are still going to be really, really good. While the team will most certainly miss the young Aussie, the rest of their team is still intact [knock on wood] and is actually better than they were for much of last year. Hayward made strides last season. Hood was a Draft Day steal and is much better now than at this time last year. Rudy Gobert is a beast and might just be an All-Star within two years. Favors certainly improved in '14-'15 and will likely continue to do so. Burks is back and is not dealing with an injury that has nagged him since coming into the League.
3. The list of athletes who have come back from ACL surgery and actually gotten better is impressive. Consider this list of NBA players who came back from this injury:
Al Jefferson
David West
Baron Davis (before even coming to the NBA)
Kyle Lowry (before even coming to the NBA)
Ron Harper
Sean Elliot (before even coming to the NBA)
Mark Price
Al Harrington
And NFL players:
Tom Brady
Adrian Peterson
Rob Gronkowski
Darrelle Revis
Jamaal Charles
Wes Welker
Carson Palmer
Philip Rivers
Jerry Rice
Logan Mankins
Von Miller
Eric Berry
Frank Gore
Edgerrin James
Donovan McNabb
And that's just ACL (or MCL too). It's not other major injuries like microfracture, tendons, etc that have their own success stories. While there are certainly players who have never returned to form, at least we know there's a good list of those who have, and that it's a distinct possibility in this modern age of medicine. And you can bet that Dante will be well cared for, if the Jazz organization has anything to say about it.
4. We'll have plenty to watch without having to focus on Dante's notable absence. Tibor Pleiss, Trey Lyles, Bryce Cotton, and Raul Neto will be fun to watch develop this season. Furthermore, we (and the rest of the NBA) will have an entire season of seeing, once and for all, whether Trey Burke has what it takes to rise to the challenge of being a capable floor general. I can't imagine that we will have any doubt whether Burke has it after an entire season (in his third season, mind you) of running the point in a starting role. No matter what he does, we should have a definitive answer about Trey Burke going forward. If a trade is on the horizon after this season (depending on how his backups do and whether or not Trey is replaceable by committee), it may increase Burke's trade value and net us something decent in return.
5. Dante could be ready to return in time for a playoff run. I'm not saying I think it's a good idea, but the recovery time from ACL surgery, from what I understand, could be around 8 months. That would be a few weeks before the playoffs begin, assuming Exum has his surgery now and recovers within a reasonable period of time. Seeing as how the Jazz organization tends to be risk averse, especially with someone as important to the franchise's future as Dante is, I doubt they would risk it for the sake of a playoff run with limited upside (this season). But, hey -- the possibility's still there. So you're tellin' me there's a chance...
6. Bryce Cotton and Raul Neto will get some important minutes. Obviously, we'd rather have Exum on the floor and their minutes be limited, but that's not happening. At least we get to really see what these guys can do, in a backup role to Trey Burke. Both PGs give different looks and it will be interesting to see how Quin uses their skill sets.
7. Exum didn't contribute much offensively last season. While he certainly did contribute on defense -- and the Jazz were much better with him on the floor -- we won't miss his scoring from last season. Having Burks back alone will do wonders to increase our scoring capability. Of course, we were hoping to see Exum's PPG go up significantly this year, but I'm sure the Jazz can pick up the scoring slack without him this one season... Which leads me to my next point.
8. The Jazz will circle the proverbial wagons and rally around this. One thing that the Jazz have already instilled in this group is that they are a TEAM. This is not some hodgepodge Land-Of-Misfit-Toys, as some of our teams have been over the last 10 years. You saw them stick around this summer. You heard about them working out day in and day out. You saw them support each other at Summer League. This is a good group of players and a good group of young men, who are growing together and truly care about working on their individual games. They will find a way to get better, even though they are down one of their premier players.
9. We still have Quin Snyder. If we had Ty Corbin, we'd be in deep trouble. But we don't. We have one of the best up-and-coming coaches in the league and he will work around not having Dante on the floor. Quin also has a great staff, let's not forget. At the end of the day, our coach might be our greatest asset -- especially this season.
10. Dante will be ready to go by the time we're ready to make a deep playoff run in '16-'17. The cake will continue to bake, even though one of the key ingredients won't be added until just before it's served. I think we can all agree that Exum's physical development this year will be arrested, but the other players will continue to progress. He'll be watching film all year. He'll be at almost all of their games and practices, and will be getting tutored by Quin all season long. He just turned 20, he's already got the fundamentals, and his basketball IQ will continue to increase. Once Dante's in decent enough shape to lift, he will -- and he will become even stronger. When he's fully recovered, he'll be relentlessly hitting the court. And then he'll return.
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