Rip Hamilton took an absolute beating in the final minutes of Detroit's loss to the Celtics. First he got poked in the eye by Ray Allen with about three minutes left, and because the refs swallowed their whistles, the Pistons were forced to burn a time out they really could have used in the final seconds.But more of a lasting concern is the sprained elbow he suffered in the final minute (which, to be fair, he may have sustained while illegally clutching Allen on the other end). He was forced out of the game in obvious pain and Flip Saunders still isn't sure about his availability tomorrow night. From A. Sherrod Blakely of Booth Newspapers:
"It would be different if it was his left arm, but it's his right arm, his shooting arm, the golden arm" Saunders said. "I think he'll need to get it polished up a bit before he can play."If he has any motor ability whatsoever in the arm, I'd be shocked if he sat out, but if it did come to that, the Pistons have some options. Arron Afflalo has started in place of Rip in the regular season, but Rodney Stuckey, who can play both backcourt positions, seems like the more likely option to start for him now. Stay tuned.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-29-2008 @ 6:30PM
John Barney said...
I thought the referees at the garden looked the other way for the last 2 minutes. After they hit Perkins with a technical foul they froze and swallowed the whistle as the game closed out. Garnett threw a moving screen on hamilton to free up Ray Allen for the deciding shot. Detroit missed too many free throws and Rasheed Wallace went into a fog with the game on the line.
ESPN and the sports paparazzi will get their wish Celtics vs. Lakers in the NBA finals.
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5-29-2008 @ 6:36PM
frank said...
KG is a dirty player always has been always will be;
He is not Lebron not even close;
That is why with 12 years in Minnie he never passed the 1st round.
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5-29-2008 @ 7:10PM
Obie said...
Ummm... the Timberwolves made it deep into the playoffs in 2004, where they eventually lost to the lakers.
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5-29-2008 @ 9:35PM
kilroy said...
Kevin Garnett was in the Western Conference Finals a few years ago when he had Sam Cassell and Sedale Sthreat (spelling a bit off, tough name!) playing with him.
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5-30-2008 @ 12:03AM
George B Vieto said...
If Rip Hamilton is unable to play in game six of the playoffs then it is Rodney Stuckey time.
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5-30-2008 @ 11:05AM
treysix said...
TV showed Rip getting his right arm massaged by a trainer-type just before tipoff. Don't know if that's just part of his routine or whether he has some issues going into the game.
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