zzaj wrote:Effigy wrote:Semi serious question, if it's just his thumb, couldn't we tape it up and let him play reserve minutes in a defense-only role? Lord knows he needs the practice.
Bro, this ain't the 1960s...even though I love the idea. With so much litigation in our culture now and the high stakes of a hundreds of millions of dollars playing career, teams just don't take those chances any more--even if it's a relatively minor thumb injury. All it takes is for it to get knocked, both tendons to get ripped all the way, another surgery, stabalizer cast on his shooting hand for a couple of months, a month to get flexion back. By then maybe he gets the "yips" on his shot, and things start going sideways or team dynamics totally change...it's better just to trust the doctor's orders.
You should watch the NFL sometime. They tape guys back up and send them in all the time. Even Concussions that they're supposedly serious about, the players and teams both do the bare minimum to ensure the player can get back out ASAP.
I know they're never going to do my semi-serious question, but it's not for that reason.