NBA suffering from early injury bug
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Scan the injury list and you’ll see that only five of the NBA’s 30 teams aren’t reporting any injuries right now. But the high number of players who’ve already been sidelined this season has prompted headlines describing injuries as an “epidemic’, and the ‘NBA’s most dominant force.”
“I don’t know the reason for it,” Clippers Coach Mike Dunleavy said. “Sometimes it’s bad luck. It depends what the injuries are. Sometimes they’re not in good condition coming into camp and they’re more susceptible to injuries. That’s usually pulled muscles. There’s structural stuff. Then there’s freaky stuff that happens as far as stepping on an ankle here or there. Things you can’t really avoid.”
The Clippers earlier reported that the injury bug had bitten Baron Davis, Marcus Camby, Tim Thomas and Eric Gordon.
Dunleavy’s son, Mike, who plays for the Indiana Pacers, also has been injured.
The bug also has bit Clipper opponents, including the Nuggets’ Carmelo Anthony, the Rockets’ Shane Battier, the Mavericks’ Josh Howard, the Kings’ Kevin Martin and the Warriors’ Al Harrington.
The Clippers (1-8) host the Spurs (4-5) at 7:30 tonight at the Staples Center. San Antonio will be playing without Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. But the Spurs seem to have been doing just fine, winning two straight, including last night’s victory over the Kings.
But their 1-8 track record shows the Clippers haven’t taken advantage of the injury bug.
“[The Kings] didn’t have Kevin Martin and they still went out and beat us,” Clippers forward Marcus Camby said. “We can’t worry about who’s not playing. We have to focus on who’s out there on the court beforehand. If they’re out there on the court, that means the coach has confidence in them to get the job done.”
There may be no silver lining for the Clippers. Dunleavy has often expressed that the injuries made the team feel as if it were behind in training camp. Camby sees a silver lining, though, for other teams.
“It’s good that teams have injuries early and not have them late when teams are trying to make a playoff push,” Camby said. “It’s kind of ironic. Some teams are missing major guys and it’s definitely affecting their record, but hopefully guys aren’t out too long.
“Even as a competitor, you never want to see your colleagues injured and stuff like that. You always want to wish them good luck and good health.”
-- Mark Medina