What is sometimes forgotten, is that an ACL injury back made it harder on a player to return to their previous level. Now days its almost a given that it will happen. Back then it was not about returning to normal but just getting as close as possible. They also did not have the rehab knowlege that they have to day. Jackie came back without having totally healed and it was obvious by the number of times she had to have it redone that their level of competence was not even close to what it has become. It was not long before that when any ACL injury guaranreed the end of a players career and even normal walking ability.
At their level of expertise then, Jackie came back with far less mobility and quickness than she had before the ACL. In todays reality that would not have been the case. There were people who said he desire to play in the WNBA was unattainable but she did make it. She probably should have made it earlier but bad luck and timing, which is essential for bench players, just didn't work to her benefit.
I don't think her not playing for UConn made much difference. She injured herself in the Cal playoffs and wasn't even able to play in the Mc D AA game. She probably would have had the same problems getting back on the court due to the fact that ACL operations were still in their infancy. In retro spect she stated that her problems stemmed from spending too much time in the gym without strengthening the muscles properly to prevent those injuries. Since she has learned she has been injury free.
The might of beens were her not getting injured in the first place. I do think that injury free she should still have attended UConn. The coach at USC is the one who just retired and he is a good recruiter but not so good coach. Still its a sacrifice to play on the opposite end of the country away from family, but it probabl would have been worth it. If she wanted to play closer to home Cal was an option ( didn't have the grades for Stanford ). Trahk (sp) is a smouth talker and I am sure he fed her full of BS. She would have thrived in Geno's system. Geno and her high school coach were very similar.
www.journalinquirer.com
