The final showdown between the east and the west of the playoffs remains, and the winner of these two games will catch the last train of this year's playoffs. On April 17, Beijing time, the playoffs will officially kick off, and the 16 participating teams will launch an impact towards the ultimate goal of the O'Brien Gold Cup.
On the way forward in the playoffs, many participating teams can not bypass a difficult problem, that is, injuries. Some teams have been plagued by injuries for a season, while others have suffered sudden attacks before the playoffs begin. So, how are these injured players doing? How will they affect the situation in the playoffs?
Stephen Curry (Warriors)
Status: Possible first round comeback
Among the injured players on the Western Conference playoffs, the Warriors' Curry may be the loudest one. Nearly a month has passed since Curry suspended himself in mid-March for a strained left foot. Recent news shows that Curry has participated in the team's training on April 14, local time. From Curry's performance in training and Curry's reaction after training, the current team is "optimistic" about Curry's first round of playoff games with the Nuggets.
One thing that needs to be added is that Curry's current injured foot is still a little uncomfortable. But the Warriors' core player also said he doesn't have to recover to 100 percent to play. "I need to get permission to play now, and at this point in time, I don't feel like I have time to worry about it anymore," Curry said, "do you want to help the team to win the game?" Do you want to have the influence you deserve on the game? If I feel that I should give a positive answer to these questions, then I will definitely play. ”
Murray & Porter (Nuggets)
Status: There is little hope of coming back
Compared to the Warriors, who are about to return to Curry, their opponents in the first round of the playoffs, the Nuggets, have not had such good luck. Although jokic, the core of the Nuggets, has continued to play at his MVP level this season, the two important helpers around him, Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr., may not be able to appear in the playoffs.
April 12, local time, is the day Murray seriously injured his knee for a year. A year ago, Murray tore the cruciate ligament of his left knee and underwent surgery to begin a long recovery. Recently, although Murray has begun to appear in the team's training and warmed up with his teammates before the game, he himself still does not have much confidence in his badly injured knee. Therefore, Nuggets coach Malone has also recently stated that the team has given the decision on when to play to Murray himself. "Whether it's a comeback in the playoffs this year, or next season, it's up to him to decide," Malone said.
The team's other big player, Michael Porter Jr., who has to undergo low back surgery after playing 9 games this season, is not optimistic about the current recovery. Like Murray, Potter has recently returned to the training ground, but his physical condition has not returned to the level of the game. Coupled with an old injury to the lower back, Porter and the Nuggets did not dare to act rashly. From the current situation, Porter Jr. is likely not to play in this year's playoffs.
To make matters worse, in the final regular season game against the Lakers, Nuggets guard Campazo was suspended by the league for deliberately pushing and shoving Ellington dangerously on the court. Therefore, in the Nuggets' playoff opener with the Warriors, Campazo will not be able to play. Jokic, who already lacked helpers, missed a teammate's help in the playoff opener.
Doncic (Lone Ranger)
Status: The first battle is in doubt
The No. 4 Lone Rangers in the West have home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs this season, so they have a good chance of rewriting the fate of being eliminated in the first round of the first two seasons. But in the final game of the regular season, the team's absolute core Doncic's accidental injury cast a shadow on their playoff journey this year.
The Lone Ranger's opponent in the final game of the regular season is the Spurs, and originally, there was no pressure on both sides to win this game, but it was in such a relatively relaxed atmosphere that the Lone Ranger suffered a heavy blow. With 2 minutes and 24 seconds left in the third quarter of the game, Doncic noticed discomfort in his left calf after a jumping pass landed on the ground. He immediately called out a timeout, and after a brief exchange with the team doctor, Doncic limped out of the stadium. Thereafter, after mrI examination, Doncic was diagnosed with a left calf strain. He currently needs to wear protective boots, and the team has neither given a timeline for his comeback nor announced that he will not be able to play in the first game of the playoffs with the Jazz.
"If he can put on his sneakers, if he can step on the pitch, then he's going to play," Said Lone Ranger coach Kidd, referring to Doncic' situation, "If he can't play, we're not going to put him in a situation where it's going to hurt his body or make the injury worse." ”
Zion Williamson (Pelicans)
Status: Still out of the game indefinitely
In the game against the Clippers, the Pelicans withstood the opponent's strong counterattack in the second half, and finally "reversed" the opponent, getting the last playoff ticket in the West. And as the Pelicans can continue their journey this season, Zion Williams' outlook is also variable.
At the beginning of the season, Zion had to undergo surgery because of a stress fracture in his foot. Since then, his injuries have been repeated and his personal situation has always been confusing. But in the recent play-offs, Zion not only appeared on the sidelines to watch, but also had footage of dunks in pre-game training, which seemed to be recovering very well. Zion has now resumed all-time confrontational training 5-on-5, a progress he has never made before the season, according to the team.
Although Zion is recovering well, the team still puts him on the injured list, and coach Willie Green also said that the inside line is still in an "indefinite suspension" when talking about Zion. Without Zion, the Pelicans made it all the way from 9th to the playoffs, so there's a good chance they won't let Zion, who hasn't made an appearance this season, make a playoff appearance.
Robert Williams (Celtic)
Status: First Round Return in Game 6
After the Nets beat the Cavaliers in the playoffs to reach the playoffs as no. 7 in the West, Bruce Brown spoke in a post-game interview about the team's next opponent, the Celtics. In Brown's view, the Celtics, who lost Robert Williams, were greatly affected. Brown's remarks were immediately "refuted" by teammate Durant, who considered it to be "disrespectful" to the Green Army.
Bruce Brown's comments are also factually based, and Robert Williams, as an important force in the Celtics' interior, has grown into the team's defensive core this season. When Robert Williams came on, the Celtics conceded 103.4 points on a 100-game defensive deficit, and when he wasn't on the floor, that number would rise to 106.6 points.
It was such an influential player who suffered a torn knee meniscus at the end of March this year. But immediately, Robert Williams underwent minimally invasive surgery. According to the comeback schedule given at the time, Robert Williams would have to rest at least 4 to 6 weeks, while the Eastern Conference semifinals will open on May 1 local time. Extrapolating from this time, there is a good chance that Robert Williams will miss all the games in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
However, the latest news shows that Robert Williams' recovery is better than expected. If the Celtics and Nets' series reaches Game 6, according to the current schedule, it is April 29, Beijing time, then Robert Williams is very likely to return to the game. From this perspective, Durant's caution is not entirely unreasonable.
Ben Simmons (Nets)
Status: First round Game 4 comeback
Compared with the opponent Celtics, although there is also a heavyweight player in the Nets lineup who is temporarily unable to play due to injury, his impact on the team is far greater than the impact of Robert Williams' absence on the Green Army. After all, the player hasn't made a debut for the Nets yet, and he's Ben Simmons.
Since coming to Brooklyn from Philadelphia on the day of the trade deadline, Ben Simmons has been actively training and recovering. However, until the end of the playoffs and playoffs, the Nets' guard who replaced James Harden was still plagued by the soreness of the lower back and never reached the state where he could play. Coach Nash's statement of his injury was: "It all depends on Ben (Simmons)'s low back reaction, which is not something that I or anyone on our team can help him out." He has a chance to return to the field and may not come back to play. ”
According to the latest news, Simmons has been increasing basketball-related activities in the last 2 weeks and has not yet participated in 5-on-5 full-court training. The earliest possible comeback time for him is on April 25, local time, the Nets' home game with the Celtics. However, considering that he has not played an official game for a long time, even if Simmons returns, he will definitely be limited by playing time, and what role he can play for the Nets must also be marked with a question mark.
John Collins & Clint Capela (Eagles)
Status: The playoffs are expected to return
In a life-and-death battle with the Cavaliers in a playoff, the Hawks broke through the opponent's blockade and won away from home, catching the last train of the Eastern Conference playoffs. However, in this game, the Hawks main interior Capela injured his knee. Coupled with John Collins, who has been on the sidelines before, the Hawks have advanced to the playoffs, but the interior has been hit hard.
In the first half of the play-off against the Cavaliers, Eagles center Capela was knocked down on his right knee by the fallen Cavaliers interior Mobley, and the joints appeared to be overextended. Such an impact made Capela fall to the ground in pain, waiting for a long time to leave the stadium with the help of her teammates, and never returned to the field. Although the scene of the injury is shocking, after a preliminary examination, the Hawks are optimistic about Capela's injury, diagnosing that he did not have a serious injury, which is undoubtedly good news for the Hawks, who are about to start the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs with the Heat.
In addition to Capela, John Collins, another member of the Eagles interior, is currently recuperating from injuries. Collins injured his right foot in the middle of the season, and the initial diagnosis was only a strain, but in March, Collins, who was not getting better, reviewed and found that his injury had become a tear in the sole fascia of his right foot. At the same time, the fingers of his right hand also sprained. After more than a month of recuperation and treatment, Collins has just resumed partial training 4-on-4. If the Hawks can play a few more games with the Heat, Collins could make a comeback in the first round of the playoffs.