Brand To Philly is a Greta move for Philly...but

[b3bawla]

I think this is a great move for Philly. But does anybody think it's a bit risky to throw that type of money on a player who is just coming off a major injury. Brand's always been tough and never considered injury prone, but he's 254 pounds and just had a major ankle injury (ruptured Achilles tendon). Dan Marino never threw 30 TD's after his. I think Nique popped his as well.

Can anybody think of any success or failure stories of star players coming back a from ruptures (not just strained like VC) Achilles tendon?

The point is this...Brand isn't young at 29 (isn't old either though) and while he's in great shape, he carries a lot of weight. Can his surgically repaired Achilles hold up? A better question may be will he have confidence in it? Another question we could ask is will he injure another body part compensating for discomfort of lack of explosiveness that could come his way. And foot/ ankle injuries for Bigs can end careers. I'm thinking about Bill Walton and Rik Smits...It almost ended Ilgauskis' (sp?) Come to think of it...I think that the injury that robbed Arvydas Sabonis of mobility and started his back troubles was a torn Achilles.

I think there is a least a decent chance that the 20/10 Brand is a thing of the past. He's always been surprisingly explosive. If he loses that explosiveness...at his height...he really may take a step back.

I think he'll still be a good player...but I was just letting my mind wander. This is definitely a high risk, high reward move...Any thoughts guys?

[Zone034life]

It is a risk but you have to applaud the sixers for at least trying. If Brand returns to form he is one of the best PF's in the league.

[Diesel]

Didn't Nique rupture his achilles when he was over 30?

Came back, was leading us to the championship and was traded by Babcock.

[DrReality]

Didn't he come back at the end of last year to show that he could play? That would be very important given his contract status.

[OGRat]

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Can anybody think of any success or failure stories of star players coming back a from ruptures (not just strained like VC) Achilles tendon?

Not that he is a star, but Derek Fisher (2002?).

[Sasha_Volkov]

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Didn't Nique rupture his achilles when he was over 30?

Came back, was leading us to the championship and was traded by Babcock.

43% shooting on 21 shots a game wasn't leading us anywhere. '93-94 was all about Mookie's career year with a little Kevin Willis on the side.

[BusBoyIsBack]

I think it was worth the risk. THey still have the rookie they drafted who they hope to develop in Marreese Speights. Why not take a chance on a vet like Brand, one of the four active career 20/10 guys in the league?