The Boston Celtics Mailing List Digest, V14 #229

[Eggcentric at aol.com]

< While the team has been careful to term the operation; "minor," 
perhaps to avoid embarrassing the medical staff, 6-8 weeks of 
rehab, suggests other wise. > - JB

I realize you have been questioning the competency of Head
Team Physician, Doctor Brian McKeon, and have pointed to
Shira’s 8/13 column as some sort of verification of your theory.   
It's an interesting subject what with so many knee, ankle,
and shoulder injuries to our players. 

Here is the lead paragraph from Shira's original 8/3 column.

     <Al Jefferson underwent minor arthroscopic surgery on 
     his right ankle yesterday due to discomfort caused by a 
     tendon. The procedure was more exploratory than anything 
     else. Team physician Dr. Brian McKeon performed the 
     operation assisted by Dr. Mark Slovenkai at New England 
     Baptist Hospital. Jefferson will begin rehabilitation 
     immediately and the Celtics medical staff expects the 
     power forward ready to compete in training camp at the 
     start of October.> - Shira

And here are the lead paragraphs from her 8/13 column. 

     < The Celtics' definition of ``minor" differs slightly from 
     those found in the dictionary. ``Minor" typically refers to 
     something small in amount, extent, or size, lesser in 
     seriousness or importance. For the Celtics, ``minor" 
     apparently refers to something they don't want drawing a 
     lot of attention or scrutiny.

     On Aug. 3, the Celtics announced that Al Jefferson had 
     undergone``minor arthroscopic surgery" on his right 
     ankle a day earlier. Late last week, Jefferson reported that 
     he had bone chips removed and he now spends most of his 
     days lounging around watching music videos, with his right 
     leg elevated. The Celtics medical staff treats the ankle with 
     ice and massage. > - Shira

The essential difference between the two Shira columns is that 
the word "minor" has been subtracted from his arthroscopic 
surgery.   And here's my take on why.

As I'm sure you know, JB, last season management, coaches, and
teammates grew increasingly weary of Al's poor conditioning, 
work ethic, mindset, and constant complaints of ankle pain. 
 
Between sprained ankles he was regularly beaten up in practice 
by Perkins and Gomes. What seemed to annoy Doc Rivers 
the most, however, was that many of Al's most vocal ankle 
complaints were timed to practices and games in which he 
performed the worst.   Eventually he was removed from the
lineup for the last dozen or so games of the season ... 
ostensibly to rest his ankle, but realistically, to teach him 
a lesson.

After reading comments that he was too soft to play in pain, 
after hearing his name tossed around in various trade rumors, 
and after a mediocre summer league (ok - he had that one good 
game), he became more bummed than ever.   The concerned 
Celt BT felt compelled to step in and finally convince Jeff that 
his ankle was fine/would be fine with a minor operation.   
After the procedure, he was honestly told that a tiny chip had 
been removed from his ankle and assured that he would be 
pain free and 100% healthy by the start of training camp 
which was two months away.   

What the team didn't anticipate was Al's reaction to their 
press release of "minor arthroscopic surgery" and "exploratory 
procedure."   In his mind, these descriptions did nothing to 
dispel the allegations that he was soft and couldn't/wouldn't 
play with pain.

So enter Plan B in the master plan to re-program Al's head ... 
the Shira column of 8/13.   

I'm not attempting here to protect our BT, Dr. McKeon, Shira, 
or Jeff.   I'm merely hoping that you will be able to connect
the dots.

Egg
----------------------------
August 03, 2006
Surgery for Big Al
By Shira Springer, Globe Staff

Al Jefferson underwent minor arthroscopic surgery on his right ankle 
yesterday due to discomfort caused by a tendon. The procedure was more exploratory 
than anything else. Team physician Dr. Brian McKeon performed the operation 
assisted by Dr. Mark Slovenkai at New England Baptist Hospital. Jefferson will 
begin rehabilitation immediately and the Celtics medical staff expects the power 
forward ready to compete in training camp at the start of October.

The surgery, however, represents a setback for Jefferson as he prepares for 
his third NBA season. Following a disappointing sophomore campaign curtailed by 
two ankle sprains (one right, one left), Jefferson hoped to be in the best 
shape of his career by the start of training camp. Since the end of the season, 
he had lost a significant amount of weight in an effort to be in the best 
condition possible for playing an uptempo style. To vary his strength and 
conditioning routine and gain some valuable playing time, Jefferson participated in 
the Las Vegas summer league even though his right ankle was not fully healed and 
he suffered some pain from a lingering bone bruise in the joint. Jefferson 
sprained his right ankle Feb. 3 against the Clippers.

It has been a busy time for McKeon, who performed left knee surgery on Wally 
Szczerbiak in April, then operated on Kendrick Perkins (left shoulder) before 
attending to Jefferson. McKeon is scheduled to perform surgery on Paul Pierce 
(left elbow) on Aug. 9. If all goes well throughout each players' 
rehabilitation program, they should be ready to go for preseason. Szczerbiak and Perkins 
are reportedly on schedule. 
-----------------------------------------------
Jefferson riding out rehab

By Shira Springer   |   August 13, 2006

The Celtics' definition of ``minor" differs slightly from those found in the 
dictionary. ``Minor" typically refers to something small in amount, extent, or 
size, lesser in seriousness or importance. For the Celtics, ``minor" 
apparently refers to something they don't want drawing a lot of attention or scrutiny.

On Aug. 3, the Celtics announced that Al Jefferson had undergone ``minor 
arthroscopic surgery" on his right ankle a day earlier. Late last week, Jefferson 
reported that he had bone chips removed and he now spends most of his days 
lounging around watching music videos, with his right leg elevated. The Celtics 
medical staff treats the ankle with ice and massage.

``I've got two choices," said Jefferson, who is walking around on crutches. 
``I can lay around on my bed or I can lay around on my couch. So I rotate."

To stay in shape, Jefferson has been riding a stationary bike with one leg 
and lifting weight with his upper body. (Celtics executive director of 
basketball operations Danny Ainge was quick to note the stationary bike comes with arm 
levers that can provide a vigorous cardiovascular workout.) After having 
stitches removed, Jefferson hopes to start rehabbing his ankle tomorrow. But it 
will be some time before he resumes playing basketball.

``They're saying 6-8 weeks from the time of surgery," said Jefferson, ``but 
who knows because it's going quicker than expected right now. I'm going to be 
ready for training camp. I'm not going to say I'm going to be in the best shape 
when training camp starts, but by the time training camp ends, I'll be able 
to get myself into the shape I want to be in."

To make sure his weight stays in check, Jefferson has stayed away from fried 
food and sweets and hired a chef. This was to be a big summer for him as he 
worked to shed weight and body fat and rebounded from a pair of sprained ankles 
that curtailed his sophomore season.

Training camp starts Oct. 2, and don't be surprised if Jefferson misses a 
practice here or there. Lingering pain in the ankle, which Jefferson sprained 
Feb. 3 in a game against the Clippers, spurred him to have a CAT scan about a 
week after the Celtics returned from summer league play in Las Vegas. The ankle 
bothered Jefferson throughout the competition, but he had become accustomed to 
``some good days and some bad days." He tried to ignore the fact that the pain 
never subsided. Much to his relief, the bone chips were discovered.

``It got to the point where it was really frustrating for myself," said 
Jefferson. ``It probably got to the point where some people didn't believe I was 
really hurt. After it started doing so well after surgery [with not a lot of 
pain or swelling], it was a big relief for me."

Asked if he is worried about chronic ankle problems throughout his career, 
Jefferson said, ``I'm not really concerned about it. That's why I'm doing what 
they tell me to do, so it heals right and it doesn't become a bigger problem. 
They want me to take it slow, so I'm babying it a little bit, not walking on 
it, keeping it propped up."

But don't confuse babying the ankle with Jefferson being a baby when it comes 
to injuries. He didn't like being called soft.

``I'm not going to say it didn't bother me at all," he said. ``But I know 
what I can do and who I am. I know if I'm in pain, I'm in pain. I don't have to 
lie about it because I'm too soft. I'm not going to lie to keep from playing 
basketball. I'm going to be the player I know I can be. No excuses."