Courant: Juwan Durham's Road to Recovery

[UChusky916]

Juwan Durham's Road To Recovery

 

[gtcam]

If he can stay healthy - WATCH OUT
What a stroke for a big guy

 

[tentoes4rings]

Seems like such a great kid. Hopefully his hard work and perseverance pay off this year, but will be a very easy kid to root for regardless of his on court contribution. One thing we can be very proud of the past 30 plus years is the overall caliber of the kids who've played in our uniform. Props to JC and KO for recruiting a special lot of kids overall.

 

[mauconnfan]

Can't root any harder for a kid as I will for him. Great kid, you can tell, and just deserving of staying healthy and impacting the team.

 

[Kitaman]

Is there an example of a player (any sport) recovering from back to back knee injury/surgery on separate knees?

Seems extraordinary and special, and honestly frightful.

 

[Kemba'sYogurt]

"I'm playing, final decision." -juwan Durham

Great for him, really wonderful kid.

 

[jibsey]

Love the attitude but gotta worry that the kid is 6'11" and 207 lbs. That's a formula for getting thrown around on the court.

 

[JakeTheDog]

Is there an example of a player (any sport) recovering from back to back knee injury/surgery on separate knees?

Seems extraordinary and special, and honestly frightful.

DeJuan Blair doesn't have an ACL in either knee. I'm not sure how far apart the surgeries were though. Not an apples to apples comparison but there is some precedent.

 

[husky429]

DeJuan Blair doesn't have an ACL in either knee. I'm not sure how far apart the surgeries were though. Not an apples to apples comparison but there is some precedent.

He was able to do that because he's such a manimal his leg muscles supported the knee, right? Might be a little different with out bean poles!

On a side note, why is it that we are consistently recruiting string beans? Enoch is the exception but he was a local boy.

I guess Ollie is looking for athleticism and skill first? The skilled and athletic bigs are usually going to the duke UKs of the world.

 

[mauconnfan]

He was able to do that because he's such a manimal his leg muscles supported the knee, right? Might be a little different with out bean poles!

On a side note, why is it that we are consistently recruiting string beans? Enoch is the exception but he was a local boy.

I guess Ollie is looking for athleticism and skill first? The skilled and athletic bigs are usually going to the duke UKs of the world.

Durham is plenty skilled and his "thin" physique doesn't scare me at all, only his mental status with his knees. I mean while on one end you question his ability to hold his own near the basket but how about guarding the guy? I mean he's shooting over everyone who matches up with him at the 4 and his length will gather a few loose boards too. He's fine, will grow into his own and become a huge factor if he stays healthy and trusts his knees.

I mean they all get their share of "thin" dudes too, Marcus Lee, Skal and others began slight of body also. But we seem to get the larger share as of late I agree.

 

[husky429]

Durham is plenty skilled and his "thin" physique doesn't scare me at all, only his mental status with his knees. I mean while on one end you question his ability to hold his own near the basket but how about guarding the guy? I mean he's shooting over everyone who matches up with him at the 4 and his length will gather a few loose boards too. He's fine, will grow into his own and become a huge factor if he stays healthy and trusts his knees.

I mean they all get their share of "thin" dudes too, Marcus Lee, Skal and others began slight of body also. But we seem to get the larger share as of late I agree.

I'm pretty excited to see him play. If he can be mentally healthy he could be a MAJOR player. Maybe not this year as he hasn't played in 20 months or something like that... but he just oozes skill and fluidity on the court.

 

[upstater]

On a side note, why is it that we are consistently recruiting string beans? Enoch is the exception but he was a local boy.

They missed out on Diamond Stone and Jessie Govan, as well as some beefy PFs.

 

[SteelCT]

They missed out on Diamond Stone and Jessie Govan, as well as some beefy PFs.

I think this also has to do with our style of play, or the type of game we are trying to play in any event. I think Ollie wants to try to get up and down, a fast paced offense does not fit in well with larger, less mobile forwards. It takes time for the larger big men to transform into a player who can get up and down the court at the pace that we need to than the few years we have to offer.

 

[aceboon]

I think this also has to do with our style of play, or the type of game we are trying to play in any event. I think Ollie wants to try to get up and down, a fast paced offense does not fit in well with larger, less mobile forwards. It takes time for the larger big men to transform into a player who can get up and down the court at the pace that we need to than the few years we have to offer.

KO likes to say this but at the end of the day they play a slower paced, half-court game.

 

[aceboon]

Is there an example of a player (any sport) recovering from back to back knee injury/surgery on separate knees?

Seems extraordinary and special, and honestly frightful.

Can't think of anyone off the top of my head but Ray Smith of Arizona is also in the TBD category. Tore his ACL in one of his knees the summer before his senior year of HS, then tore the ACL in his other knee before the start of his freshman year at Zona. He's still being touted as one of Arizona's best pro prospects.

 

[elmcityboy]

Is there an example of a player (any sport) recovering from back to back knee injury/surgery on separate knees?

Seems extraordinary and special, and honestly frightful.

i follow professional skateboarding with almost as much fervor as uconn basketball. dustin dollin has had six (!) acl reconstruction surgeries and is still doing it. not exactly relevant to juwan's situation, but you said "any sport" so here i am trying to offer a glimmer of hope. here he is doin' it at age 35:

 

[boog204]

KO likes to say this but at the end of the day they play a slower paced, half-court game.

Yup, every year we get the "we are a transition team" coachspeak. Goes back to JC promising to press for the last 10 years of his career. Maybe Justin Brown will finally secure that starting gig this year.