March 18, 2009

Grin and Bear It

Tyson knows at this point he'll have to play through the pain.

The Hornets return to the floor tonight to take on the Minnesota Timberwolves at New Orleans Arena and No. 6 says he will play, as quoted in the Times-Picayune:

“My ankle is banged up, but I’m going to continue to try and play through it, ” Chandler said. “But it’s definitely affecting me, because a lot of the stuff I get comes from energy and hustle, and I don’t feel like I’m able to do that.”

The Hornets are 9-3 in 12 games since Tyson returned with a 15-point, 10 rebound double double against Sacramento on February 23.

In his first ten games back, nine of them wins, Ty averaged 9.8 points and 10.8 boards per game. But New Orleans has lost their last two and TC has averaged just four points and eight rebounds per in those two defeats.

“Those ligaments (in his ankle) aren’t completely healed, ” coach Byron Scott told the Times-Picayune. “It kind of comes and goes. Sometimes it gets tight, and he can’t loosen it up. He’s probably going to fight that for the rest of the season. He said (Monday) it got tight on him.”

WHAT MAKES TY SPECIAL
Coach Scott believes the injury is taking away two of the most important ingredients to Tyson’s game, as quoted by WWL-TV in New Orleans:

“It really negates his mobility and his athleticism and those are the two things that make him special,” Scott said Tuesday following practice. “When he told me about it last night, I was kind of worried. He told me just at the start of the third quarter.

“Right then I got a little nervous. That’s a big concern of mine.”

TC CAN’T JUMP
The injury has really hurt The Big Easy on the boards, where he makes his living with rebounds, put-backs and tip-ins, Scott told WWL-TV:

“He has a hard time getting to the ball, jumping,” Scott said. “It takes away what makes him special. We all know how high he jumps. He can’t jump.

“When you’ve got a 7-footer who is as athletic as he is and as quick as he is and that’s what he depends on and you take his ankle and tell him he’s going to play on one ankle, it’s tough.”

Tyson’s belief is that time would give him the ability to heal, but with the season ending in less than month and 16 games remaining, the Hornets, in the thick of a fight for their playoff lives, can’t afford to have their big man in the middle take any time off, as he was quoted by WWL:

“You do have to be smart about the situation. I want to go into the playoffs healthy and be able to give my team something. I’m going to play as long as I’m not hurting my team.”

SILENCING THE GROWL
Though Ty missed the first meeting with the T-Wolves, he’ll be in the lineup tonight as the Hornets look to take the season series in a sweep.

New Orleans used a strong fourth quarter to pull off a 101-97 win in their first matchup. T-Wolves center Al Jefferson went for 25 points against the weakened NOLA interior, but Jefferson injured his knee the next day and is now out for the season.

Coverage of tonight’s game begins at 5 p.m. PST and all the action can be seen live in New Orleans on CST.

RELATED STORIES
Hornets’ Chandler still playing through ankle pain (WWL-TV.com, March 18, 2009)
http://www.wwltv.com/sports/hornets/stories/wwl031709bhhornetschandler.4...
Injured Hornets center Tyson Chandler has struggled of late (The Times-Picayune, March 18, 2009)
http://blog.nola.com/hornetsbeat/2009/03/injured_new_orleans_hornets_ce....