If only we could trade his bum knee to Phoenix in return for his heart.
good news
New Orleans more than ready to see Eric Gordon on the court
More in link.Quote:
The irony of the television commercial is cutting. There’s New Orleans Hornets guard Eric Gordon, in a promo for the team’s new cable television home, asking the question:
“New Orleans: Are you ready?”
Yes. New Orleans is ready, and has been for quite some time, nearly two months, in fact, for the injured Gordon to return to the city after being exiled since the first week of November to rehabilitate a sore right knee that has limited Gordon’s time in a Hornets uniform to nine out of possible 91 games since he was acquired from the Los Angeles Clippers 53 weeks ago as part of the deal that sent Chris Paul to the Clippers.
As Gordon sits – he has practiced full-contact with his teammates perhaps once this season, just before the Oct. 31 opener against the San Antonio Spurs, Friday night’s opponent in San Antonio – the Hornets plod along their youthful way minus the potential 20 points Gordon could provide on a nightly basis.
Never was that better illustrated than in Wednesday night’s 93-77 loss to the Clippers, New Orleans’ ninth straight as Gordon watched from the bench, where the Hornets struggled to find any semblance of offensive firepower.
Before the game, Gordon said he expects to return to New Orleans by week’s end, saying the issue with his knee, which involved the patellar tendon and a bone bruise, has calmed to the point where Gordon predicts he’ll play by the end of the month.
If Gordon does return in the immediate future, he already will have missed more than 25 percent of the 2012-13 season, with the Hornets well on their way to another lottery drawing next May as they're 5-20, in last place in the Southwest Division and owners of the worst record in the Western Conference.
The ambiguity surrounding Gordon’s aching right knee, and the team’s reluctance to offer any specificity about the nature of the injury to their $58 million, max-money player, makes Gordon’s continued absence from the team all the more confounding.
The player’s comments he made last summer after agreeing to an offer sheet from the Phoenix Suns – Gordon said his “heart is in Phoenix” and he hoped the Hornets would not match the deal – have created the perception that Gordon does not want to play in New Orleans.
It has raised the ire of Hornets fans who remember how Baron Davis, then a max-money player, slogged his way through his final months here, eventually forcing a trade to the Golden State Warriors, as well as the saga of Jamal Mashburn who rode a bone bruise right into a paper trade to the Philadelphia 76ers and eventual retirement while reaping the totality of his multi-million dollar contract.
Those who know Gordon, however, don’t believe the 23-year-old can be placed in the Davis/Mashburn category.
“He’s in a good situation here,” said one source with knowledge of the last year’s saga who requested anonymity. “People in New Orleans in general are very sensitive to people not wanting to be here. But it’s a good situation. A good young team, good coach, good culture. He does want to be here, I just think he wants to be playing at a high level and he can’t.”
Why?
“It’s a mystery,” the source said.
This team missed JJack and Landry more than people realize. Ryno is great and Vasquez has been good now given minutes, but Jack / Landry are essentially the reason GSW are a playoff team now.
I'm fine with another year losing. Another top 10 pick is great. An Eric Gordon with injury issues behind him is better. Please pray Eric Gordon can stay healthy lol.
I guess the question is, if you would have known Gordon wasnt ready, and Ad would deal with his own injuries would you have seen it coming? Because I agree, At the beginning of the season I felt we were a .500 team, but i can sympathize with their record now somewhat.
I almost forgot what he could do
http://youtu.be/ezXplErP8LU
video of Jen Hale's interview w/Eric Gordon from before the Clippers game:
http://www.fox8live.com/video?&clipI...autostart=true
So... If Gordon returns, were the Mayans at least kind of right?
http://www.nola.com/hornets/index.ss..._river_default
Hornets need to find a new medical staff.
I read this last night... I was a little shocked, but then again, I have been screaming at the Medical staff since the beginning. I knew it was partially the medical staff's ineptitude to diagnose and Eric's unwillingness to play with any pain.
Granted, if in 3 months Gordon does need micro fracture, the hornet's staff will look like geniuses. lol
yea but when your job depends on someone else's opinion and every single doctor he went to, and it seems like he went to a lot, told him not to get the surgery after one of our guys did, you'd do the same thing.. this only further increases the idea that phoenix talked us down so much and got in his head about playing here... Benson needs to do something about this
The verdict is still out. Gordon hasn't played yet. There is no reason to do anything until Gordon comes back from the Injury and plays out the res of the season without any MAJOR setbacks. Like I sad if in March Gordon has to get micro fracture surgery, he would of been the blame for all this time wasted.
Medical Team = Ochsner?
more than likely these guys:
http://andressamed.files.wordpress.c...s-hospital.jpg
childrens hospital on adult swim for anyone thats hasnt seen it.. pretty funny
I wouldn't be suprised if Benson starts doing with the Hornets what he does with all the Saints players. Minor basic injuries=team doctors.....anything in the least bit complicated = out of state experts (which is almost always Dr. Andrews).
He wouldn't make a 5 game over five hundred difference. But as you stated we are 2-10 when ad plays. Who is to say gordon couldn't of been good for another 3 which would of put us at 5-5. That's a big swing. I think if both would of been healthy out the gate we would be only a couple games below five hundred instead of our current situation...but just my thoughts and fans optimism.
AD hasn't been given the ball to win us those close games but maybe once or twice? Either he'll learn how to win games in the clutch. I know Rivers can score clutch shots, but the ball is never in his hands. It's always in Vasquez's incapable hands.
A player of a certain caliber CAN make a huge difference. Especially when your team's best are so inexperienced. I mean there's only 5 guys on the court at any given time.
I mean think about how many times you've thought to yourself 'Game is close. If only we had a go to guy right there we didn't need to run through a dozen screens to get a good shot."
Reading this makes me think Gordon is a little strange. First, I am no fan of the Hornets' medical staff, but he has yet to prove that rest will work, so let's reserve judgment. Second, I cannot believe that he fought over $500,000 a year for 5 years and then turned it down when the Hornets basically said they would give it to him is he played 75% of the season. Sounds like he is content taking money while he sits on the bench. His negotiating tactics are unprofessional it appears.
He ended up getting 1.5 mill per year. Seems like a good business move for a business that has a very short expiration date. The whole heart in phx was dumb but I think he did well for himself.
Hornets said u can't get this elsewhere he said yes I can, and he was right. I've never been mad at him for that.
If he was going to agree with the team for an average of 13.5, He was doing it in good faith. We obviously had an opportunity to avoid the whole debacle but we decided to penny pinch over 500k per. I can see why I felt the team wasn't committed to him. You may see it as only 500k a year, his agent and him is looking at it like a 4-6 Million dollar lost for accepting a deal like that. Love him or hate it, there are still 2 sides to every story. The Hornets could have avoided this whole mess in the first place.
Monty asks Hornets fans to go easy on Gordon when he returns, and Gordon comments on contract negotiations -
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nba--ho...193244372.html
Even when he's being sincere, his comments never seem to translate well in print.Quote:
New Orleans coach Monty Williams is asking Hornets fans for a favor regarding Eric Gordon, who plans to return to practice next week after rehabbing a knee injury: Give him a second chance.
"Our city has been a city of second chances," Williams told Yahoo! Sports. "This situation should be the same way. Eric said some things. But if you polled most of the people in our city about the things they said at [age] 23, I'm sure they had some regrets. We want our city to embrace him because that's who we are."
The words that caused such a stir for Gordon in New Orleans came in a statement he made after signing a maximum four-year, $55 million offer sheet with the Phoenix Suns this past summer. "I strongly feel they are the right franchise for me. Phoenix is just where my heart is now," Gordon stated.
Gordon told Yahoo! Sports he regretted those words, but there was a reason he was so cavalier.
"Of course I did [regret it]," Gordon said. "But that was the only way to push the table on the Hornets. To get a deal done I was willing to negotiate. My agent and I were going through negotiations with them. But they weren't leaning into really giving me one. So I had to ride with Phoenix and from Day 1 they weren't playing games."
I love my head coach.
“Part of his reasoning for turning it down,” the source said, “was he thought (the team) was jerking him around on the medical opinions so they could negotiate him down. The timing couldn’t have been worse. It created risks for everyone.”
This to me explains things a little.
My own personal switch flip to animosity only really kicked itself off when he went from one practice where I heard they ran a special end of game play that he drilled to "Out indefinitely." Felt totally let down and frustrated. If Monty wants us to give him a second chance to prove himself on the court...then he'll get it.
It's to the area where, even though it might be incredibly unfair, he can't miss any more time for more injuries.
He says the team is having a terrible year so far, but doesn't acknowledge that with him, they wouldn't be doing as terribly.
Coach: "Dear fans, I know it's been over a year and this is the first time the team or player has been candid about this situation. But we couldn't get equal value for him ya see. So we need him to come back to raise that trade value. He now understands this and is willing to quit sabotaging his career. We need you the fans to treat him like this never happened cuz he's super sensitive and might quit on himself again if people give him a hard time about being so greedy and selfish. And if he doesn't play we can't trade him. I never get involved in stuff like this but he's ruining my career."
Me: "Yeah coach I got you. Similar to EG I will feign sincerity until we can get someone in here worthy of actual sincerity from the fans. Continuing to be a jerk could turn the tables on us as the bad guys and we don't want that. I promise to quit tweeting him pics of the grinch with his face on it. My bad y'all."
It's just all too awkward. Thats what rubs fans the wrong way. You go from playing 9 games and only sitting out because the coach wants to play younger players (not due to injury), then you try out for the Olympic team which you would expect to have to play about 20 games over the summer....
...then when it's time to play for the team that pays you 14.5 mil, you're sore again? For 2 months? When, why, and how did that happen? What happened between July and October to cause this? Nobody knows or says a thing.
Do you really wonder why some fans are just fed up? Especially since most of that struggle is because your big money guy may or may not be BSing around?
Great Quote from Monty on Puddin's return. I agree.
Quote:
“Our city has been a city of second chances,” Williams told Yahoo! Sports. “This situation should be the same way. Eric said some things. But if you polled most of the people in our city about the things they said at [age] 23, I’m sure they had some regrets. We want our city to embrace him because that’s who we are.”
Read more at http://www.hoopsworld.com/will-fans-...eZEu8DzChTY.99
The guy (Stephen?) on Hornets Live just said he'd be surprised if EG plays "by February if you're lucky." Wait, what?! Does he have another source that we're not aware of? Do they have sources over there?!
You've already heard from the horses mouth predicting that he'll play by the end of the month. There's no better source than the man himself.
This whole situation is ugh
The prodigal son returns. :coolg:Quote:
Eric Gordon @TheofficialEG10
Back in NEW ORLEANS, finally I can sleep in my own bed.
Fans don't need to apologize over anything, but they need to get over it once he's back on the court. I really hope he doesn't get booed too bad (or at all) when (or if) he plays his first game this year. The team needs our full support.
You can't have salary or bonuses tied to number of games played.
I'm not sure where that's coming from, but that bit is a fabrication on someone's part.