Morrison's Knee Surgery

The latest news from the AP:
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Charlotte Bobcats forward Adam Morrison underwent surgery Saturday to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.
Morrison suffered the season-ending injury in an exhibition game on Oct. 20. The team said the surgery, performed by team physician Dr. Glenn Perry, was successful.
Morrison will remain hospitalized until Monday, when he'll begin several months of rehabilitation. Morrison is expected to be healthy in time for the start of training camp next fall. The No. 3 overall pick in the 2006 draft, Morrison averaged 11.8 points last season.

I have to say that I was so excited to get Morrison for the Bobcats. He seemed poised, according to the hype and his 50 point nights for the Zags to be next Larry Bird. Maybe the expectations were too great. He was a rookie. His footspeed and dribbling are subpar. This made him a defensive liability as well. His shooting could save all, right? It could be the cure to an ailing team that had trouble putting points on the board. Well, he had some good games and put up decent numbers, but it didn't help the team all that much. His shooting percentage was below .400, he gave up so much on the defensive end, and when the ball ended up in his hands on the break it was a guaranteed turnover.

By the end of the year, I didn't care so much about Morrison and I jumped on the Herrmann bandwagon. Maybe it wasn't fair. Maybe we hadn't seen his best yet. I was encouraged with early news coming out of camp that he had worked hard all summer. Also, with the addition of J-rich, there'd be less pressure and he'd probably perfrom better. I went to 2 preseason games and it showed. He was shooting very well, around .500. He moved more fluidly. Mind you, he'll never be Barbosa, but he moved better. His dribble seemed more sure. His passes connected. The turnovers were nil. He looked good. He looked confident. It seemed as though the once great Phoenix of Gonzaga that could breathe fire on any foe would maybe once again rise from the ashes to take flight on a much improved Bobcats squad. I was rooting for him. I was hoping he would prove the critics wrong. Namely, myself. I was his critic after starting out as his adulating fan.

The injury is unfortunate, but I am hopeful that Morrison comes back to prove the now growing list of cynics wrong. He may never be Larry Legend, but he could be a solid contributor. Good health and best of luck to Adam Morrison.