Zach Collins Out Indefinitely w/ Revision Surgery on Previous Injury

[GEE]

In that interview he said the first fracture was caused by bone spurs. That sounds very concerning to me. Potentially, what caused the bone spurs to form could be career threatening.

Not sure why, but I suspect his bones are crumbling due to the added mass that he's put onto his slim frame. I've always complained about the desire to play him as a small-ball C, knowing he isn't built to bang with NBA C's or even many of the PFs. It just not his game. He's a prototypical stretch 4, and although he loves to do it, coaching should keep him from mixing it up in the painted area as much as possible. Dirk style, not Oakley.

[d-train]

Blazers have not applied for disabled player exception. Blazers would automatically do this if Zach was out for season. The deadline to apply is March 3. I wonder why this application wasn't already made the day after Zach's surgery.

[Norm2953]

It would be interesting to see if Orlando offered Bomba for Zach, if Portland would bite. Trade a chronically
injured player who might be able to play vs an increasingly more likely bust in Bomba who might just need
a change in scenery

[d-train]

No chance would Blazers trade Zach for Bamba. Why would Blazers want Bamba? Zach is a key piece if healthy, or Bamba if he isn't. Why would we trade our upside away for downside certainty?

[DaVoiceMaster]

IF

[d-train]

IF

IF, THEN, ELSE

If Zach is healthy = .T.
Then no
Else no

It doesn't matter if Zach is ever healthy. We aren't going to trade Zach for Bamba. The only way Bamba comes to Portland is the same way Giles did.

[Norm2953]

Bomba with his 7-9 wingspan was the sixth pick in the 2018 draft. He was supposed to be the
best defensive big in that draft.

If Zach ever gets healthy, there is no way Portland would consider Zach for Bomba but if the team
doctors are skeptical he'll ever stay healthy, Portland view him much like Sacramento viewed Harry
Giles, a chronically injured guy who can't stay healthy. Bomba is at least healthy and perhaps a
change in scenery might help him as opposed to another Blazer big who the team prays can stay
on the court.

[d-train]

Bomba with his 7-9 wingspan was the sixth pick in the 2018 draft. He was supposed to be the
best defensive big in that draft.

If Zach ever gets healthy, there is no way Portland would consider Zach for Bomba but if the team
doctors are skeptical he'll ever stay healthy, Portland view him much like Sacramento viewed Harry
Giles, a chronically injured guy who can't stay healthy. Bomba is at least healthy and perhaps a
change in scenery might help him as opposed to another Blazer big who the team prays can stay
on the court.

I'm not following your point.

The scouting report on Bamba in 2018 was wrong. He should have been a late first or second round pick.

Kings didn't trade Giles. And, based on what Giles got in the FA market, we know they couldn't have got anything if they tried.

If Blazers doctor's are skeptical about Zach's fitness to have an NBA career, there will be sound reasoning for that skepticism. And, Zach will have no value to trade.

[DaVoiceMaster]

Does Zach have any value to trade at this point?

[d-train]

Does Zach have any value to trade at this point?

Good question. If he does, we should definitely keep him. He is exactly what we need. Assuming, we can't get AD or Giannis.

[Norm2953]

It's not likely they could afford both a healthy ZC and GTJ even they moved CJ. If he somehow makes it
back to play any meaningful minutes, team doctors and accountants will likely have a large say on what
they do with Zach.

[d-train]

Zach is a free agent next summer. He will decide the next chapter of his career. His health is the only thing Zach is not in control of. The only control Blazers can assert is to tender Zach a $7.3M QO, which he doesn't have to accept. We'll see what happens. Blazers haven't even applied for a disabled player exception. If Blazers don't do this, I'm going to assume the seriousness of Zach's injury status is hugely overblown, mostly by me.

[Matt800]

If Blazers don't do this, I'm going to assume the seriousness of Zach's injury status is hugely overblown, mostly by me.

His situation is question raising. They said something about bone spurs causing the stress fracture. I think the logic is that bone spurs are abnormalities that could cause stress to distribute differently during activity. So it could make someone at higher risk for a stress fracture. But it's difficult to know what sort of evidence they have and how confident they are that they know what's going on. And who knows what the risks are for the surgery they did. It may be something that often works well, I don't know.

The good news from Zach's last update, the doctors are very optimistic after his revision surgery. So he will probably be ready to go 4-6 months out from his surgery. But if he doesn't heal, like the first time around, that might suggest the doctors don't know whats going on.

[d-train]

My concern is why did the bone spurs form. Is there insufficient or damaged cartilage? Bone issues caused by cartilage problems are worrisome.

[Wizenheimer]

it's hard to really know what is going on with Collins. It's still possible it will be something that is corrected and never re-occurs. But the fact that he had to have a second surgery to correct the first, and the root cause may be bone spurs is a big concern. Bone spurs can re-occur frequently and are often an indication of a more significant structural problem. My brother had bone spur issues in both ankles, and feet, for 30 years. After 5 different surgeries, he's hobbled and his life has changed from very active to sedentary, except for swimming. And the bone spurs started in his mid-twenties

[Norm2953]

Portland would have a real problem if ZC actually gets back and is playing well. Likely they would match
all offers for either GTJ or ZC if both were healthy and playing well but unless they did a trade to move
either Dame/CJ, unless ownership bit the bullet and paid the taxes, they'd be paying taxes for a team that
can't win a championship.

[DaVoiceMaster]

Does Zach have any value to trade at this point?

Good question. If he does, we should definitely keep him. He is exactly what we need. Assuming, we can't get AD or Giannis.

Actually they could use a player that could actually play more than a few games over 2 years.

[d-train]

There are 15 roster spots. We use 14 because it's required and only need 12 at the most. There is nothing stopping us from accumulating the most useful 14-15 players available. We should replace Zach if we can find 15 more useful players. You know we can't.

No player comes with a guarantee of health. Until we learned that Zach's injury was a result of bone spurs, I don't believe there was any reason to consider his health as a risk. Even now, I'm not qualified to say the bone spurs mean a potential ongoing problem. Let's assume his injury is an ongoing risk. He is the best chance we have right now of having an effective mobile defender with length and all-around skills.

There is no reason to not replace Zach when someone better comes along. Same is true of Lillard and CJ. Of course, easier said than done.

[GEE]

The whole ZC story so far has been strange, but hopefully he can still be the future at PF. Much like Giles took this much time to start to round into a decent player, hopefully ZC can learn something from him, by staying resilient. Best thing for him, IMO, is to get his body right. Hire a chef if needed (like K.Love did), make sure you are training right, and avoid bulking up/stay lean and mean. Again, learn from Giles... he's a chissled - sort of skinny, but less bouncy due to the knee history. Aim for a Giannis/Durrant hybrid body, not the Bogut/Gasol stiff look. Personally I'm not even worried, because I know he's a worker, and will likely impress all of us in years to come, but won't be scrapped for some role player, for this (Stupid-Covid) year's success solely.

The future at PF. I say this again to touch on a couple of things. First, he is still quite young, his BBIQ hasn't changed at all, and he's not a realistic trade chip due to injury, and because Olshey is looking years down the road, as the better GMs usually do. Unless it's a homerun/top-20 player coming back, he's not going anywhere.

The GTJ and CJ issue is different and will only heat up as time goes by. If one is traded... who knows? ZC could get moved, but again, only for a homerun/top-20 player blockbuster. I think a player like Collins is much harder to find, and get, than a SG like CJ of GTJ. Blazers are in a pickle though. The main issue forward is that one of GTJ or CJ will need to get moved soon, but Olshey will likely avoid trading ZC at all costs, unless a better big man would be coming to P-town.

[GEE]

To Summarize... Collins needs to stay lean and mean.

Here's a fun question for all: If Collins bones heal well in the normal 4-6 weeks, and if he (speculating) this time had the correct treatment plan by putting zero weight on the injured area and stayed bound to the scooter for the first few weeks, and is out of the boot before the All-star game? Alot of if's, I know, but could he return this year? Any chance?

Here's another fun one: What do ya'll think the starting rotation will be one year from now? Any guesses? How about the bench? With or without Collins... Give me your best guess for players 1-10, or all 15 if you'd like.