SEATTLE – A year ago it was Ray Allen, missing the first 25 games of the regular season after having surgery to remove bone chips from his ankle.
This year, with the start of the regular season just two weeks away, the Seattle SuperSonics again face the unhappy prospect of being without one of their top players at the outset.
Forward Rashard Lewis, the team’s leading rebounder and second leading scorer in 2003-04, has missed the last two preseason games with plantar fasciitis in his left foot. He is almost certain to sit out the next three, could very well miss all of the remaining four, and conceivably could still be on the sidelines for the Nov. 3 season opener in Los Angeles against the Clippers.
“I really wanted to play in a couple more preseason games to work on my rhythm, because the pace of an NBA game is so different from a practice,” Lewis said after the team’s Tuesday practice. “But I definitely want to be ready for the first game of the season. I’d rather be setting out now than sitting out 10, 15 or 20 games during the season.”
The injury, which produces soreness in Lewis’ arch, is caused by an inflammation of the plantar fascia, which encapsulates muscles in the sole of the foot in addition to supporting the arch. It can be quite painful, and unlike injuries such as sprains there is no usual timetable for recovery. Plantar fasciitis might last for weeks, sometimes months, and in extreme cases can become almost a chronic condition.
“It’s a very strange injury,” said Sonics coach Nate McMillan. “You don’t know how long it will take to go away. It can even go away for a week or two and then it returns. My experience with people who have had it has not been good, in the sense that it’s always kind of been there.”
Lewis said he first experienced discomfort in his foot while working out over the summer. It was never severely painful, which led him to think of it as one of the normal aches that accompany strenuous exercise. Lewis, in fact, seemed fine in the early days of training camp, and played well in the exhibition opener against the Los Angeles Lakers.
In the second game against Portland, though, he went into the air and landed awkwardly, evidently aggravating the injury. “It just flared up on me and was hurting real bad,” he said.
Lewis gets daily treatment for the injury – he also has received special inserts for his shoes – but the most important remedy seems to be rest. While his teammates participate in their daily practice, he is left to watch from the sidelines.
Seattle teammate Mateen Cleaves had the condition while with Sacramento two years ago and eventually needed corrective surgery. One of the current Kings, Seattle native Doug Christie, is now sidelined with the same injury.
“The more I hear about it, the more cautious I get,” Lewis said. “When I walk around, it feels like I’ll be ready (in a few days). But it’s totally different when I get out there and start running. It starts hurting and the more running I do, the worse and worse it gets.”
“What I’ve experienced with that injury is that you don’t know how long it will take to get better,” McMillan said. “I’ve seen a lot of guys with that injury start to feel better, and then it comes back. So rest has always been the best approach.”
The Sonics leave Friday for a three-game exhibition road swing through San Antonio, San Diego to face the Los Angeles Lakers, and Phoenix. Not having Lewis for those games is disappointing, McMillan said, “but it’s preseason. The main concern is for him to get healthy as soon as possible.”
“We don’t need him for the preseason,” agreed guard Ray Allen. “I’d rather have him healthy. I want him fresh and ready to go (for the regular season).”
More injuries: Guard Flip Murray, who suffered a strained quadriceps muscle in the early minutes of the first training camp practice and has yet to get back on the court, may accompany the team on the upcoming road trip. “But I don’t know about him playing,” McMillan said.
Murray is making progress in his rehabilitation, but is still probably a few days away from practicing.
Also sitting out Tuesday’s workout was Allen due to a stiff lower back. Allen said his back tightened up while sitting on the bench for stretches of Sunday’s exhibition game with Utah in Spokane. Though the Sonics had a day off on Monday, Allen still felt unable to practice Tuesday, though he is expected back on the court today.
Come see the Sonics: The team will have a free scrimmage tonight at Seattle Pacific University’s Royal Brougham Pavilion. The event begins at 6:30 p.m. (doors open at 6 p.m.) and will last about one hour.
McMillan is unsure how he will divide his team, but may allow his assistant coaches to hold a draft. They will also coach the teams, with McMillan watching from somewhere in the arena.
The Sonics close their exhibition season on Oct. 29, and McMillan said he expects to wait until after that game before making his final roster cuts.
The team has 16 players on the squad and 13 have guaranteed contracts. Barring a trade or anything unexpected, those 13 will be on the team. The team may keep one additional player, with guards Cleaves and Galen Young, and guard-forward Damien Wilkins (all without guaranteed contracts) vying for that possible final spot.
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