Post by MizzouTiger on Jan 19, 2008 15:21:46 GMT -5
www.columbiatribune.com/2008/Jan/20080119Spor004.asp
Rush almost good as new
KU star starting to play like old self.
By STEVE WALENTIK of the Tribune¡¯s staff
Published Saturday, January 19, 2008
Of course, he was frustrated. Who wouldn¡¯t be?
Brandon Rush was on the verge of living his dream, of hearing David Stern call out his name on national television, of signing a lucrative contract, of playing with the best basketball players in the world in the NBA.
But playing in a pickup game only days before the NBA¡¯s predraft camp in Orlando, Rush went up for a dunk, landed awkwardly on his right leg and tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his knee. Suddenly, the professional career that had seemed so near had to be put on hold as Rush threw himself into six months of rehabilitation to be ready for his junior year at Kansas.
"I¡¯ve tried not to think about the whole NBA thing and just worry about the season ahead," said Rush, five months into his recovery, as he sat in a hotel conference room in Kansas City, site of the Big 12 Conference Media Day.
Rush didn¡¯t know then that the injury that brought him back to Lawrence would also give him the chance to be a part of arguably the best team in the country, one that carries a 17-0 record into tonight¡¯s 7 p.m. game against Missouri at Mizzou Arena.
The third-ranked Jayhawks appear capable of remaining unbeaten all the way to April. Perhaps it¡¯s too early to start speculating about such things, but Rush has no problem calling this the best team he¡¯s played on in his three years at KU.
"I definitely think so," he said. "I think it¡¯s balanced, and we¡¯re athletic, and we¡¯ve all got our own tendencies."
They all seem to complement each other. Forward Darrell Arthur, an athletic 6-foot-9 sophomore, can run the floor as well as any big man in the country. Darnell Jackson, a senior forward, gives the Jayhawks a bruiser under the basket. Junior Mario Chalmers is a smooth perimeter shooter, connecting on 46.9 percent of his 3-point attempts, and he and senior Russell Robinson defend as well as any two guards in the Big 12 Conference. Quick sophomore Sherron Collins provides instant offense whenever he¡¯s in the game, and Coach Bill Self also has big bodies Sasha Kaun, a senior, and Cole Aldrich, a freshman and McDonald¡¯s All-American, waiting on his bench.
With so much talent, it¡¯s no wonder Kansas hardly ever has a bad night. The Jayhawks are beating their opponents by an average of 25.4 points.
They have had no trouble letting Rush, their leading scorer the past two seasons, ease his way back onto the floor. He missed the first two games while still rehabbing his knee and came off the bench for the next seven. Some nights he didn¡¯t even play 25 minutes. He¡¯s moved into the starting lineup the last eight contests but is still only averaging 11.7 points, fourth on the team.
"We¡¯re a well-balanced team, and every night there¡¯s going to be a different scorer that¡¯s the high guy that night," said Rush, one of seven different players to finish a game as KU¡¯s high scorer this season. "I¡¯m just going to try to feed him the ball."
Self started to worry that Rush wasn¡¯t taking his turn at the trough often enough.
"It¡¯s pretty sad three years into it a coach has to talk a really good player into being more aggressive playing the game of basketball," Self told reporters after the Jayhawks routed Loyola of Maryland on Jan. 8. "It that sounds like I¡¯m pleased with him offensively or displeased, you guys can read into that however you want to, because a coach should never have to tell his leading scorer to be aggressive."
The coach backed off his criticism two days later, but the message had already gotten through to Rush.
He¡¯s been much more assertive since the start of Big 12 Conference play, averaging a team-high 17.5 points in the first two league games. He had a season-high 19 points in last Saturday¡¯s win at Nebraska and followed it with a 16-point, nine-rebound effort in Monday¡¯s rout of Oklahoma.
It hasn¡¯t hurt that his knee¡¯s finally feeling close to normal.
"It got to that point a few weeks ago," Rush said. "Everything started going back together. I¡¯ve started jumping as high as I used to, and my explosiveness is coming back slowly."
He might even be ready for a repeat of the 21-point, seven-rebound performance he had the last time he visited Columbia as Kansas rolled to a 92-74 victory. That would surely have NBA scouts taking notice once again.
Rush almost good as new
KU star starting to play like old self.
By STEVE WALENTIK of the Tribune¡¯s staff
Published Saturday, January 19, 2008
Of course, he was frustrated. Who wouldn¡¯t be?
Brandon Rush was on the verge of living his dream, of hearing David Stern call out his name on national television, of signing a lucrative contract, of playing with the best basketball players in the world in the NBA.
But playing in a pickup game only days before the NBA¡¯s predraft camp in Orlando, Rush went up for a dunk, landed awkwardly on his right leg and tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his knee. Suddenly, the professional career that had seemed so near had to be put on hold as Rush threw himself into six months of rehabilitation to be ready for his junior year at Kansas.
"I¡¯ve tried not to think about the whole NBA thing and just worry about the season ahead," said Rush, five months into his recovery, as he sat in a hotel conference room in Kansas City, site of the Big 12 Conference Media Day.
Rush didn¡¯t know then that the injury that brought him back to Lawrence would also give him the chance to be a part of arguably the best team in the country, one that carries a 17-0 record into tonight¡¯s 7 p.m. game against Missouri at Mizzou Arena.
The third-ranked Jayhawks appear capable of remaining unbeaten all the way to April. Perhaps it¡¯s too early to start speculating about such things, but Rush has no problem calling this the best team he¡¯s played on in his three years at KU.
"I definitely think so," he said. "I think it¡¯s balanced, and we¡¯re athletic, and we¡¯ve all got our own tendencies."
They all seem to complement each other. Forward Darrell Arthur, an athletic 6-foot-9 sophomore, can run the floor as well as any big man in the country. Darnell Jackson, a senior forward, gives the Jayhawks a bruiser under the basket. Junior Mario Chalmers is a smooth perimeter shooter, connecting on 46.9 percent of his 3-point attempts, and he and senior Russell Robinson defend as well as any two guards in the Big 12 Conference. Quick sophomore Sherron Collins provides instant offense whenever he¡¯s in the game, and Coach Bill Self also has big bodies Sasha Kaun, a senior, and Cole Aldrich, a freshman and McDonald¡¯s All-American, waiting on his bench.
With so much talent, it¡¯s no wonder Kansas hardly ever has a bad night. The Jayhawks are beating their opponents by an average of 25.4 points.
They have had no trouble letting Rush, their leading scorer the past two seasons, ease his way back onto the floor. He missed the first two games while still rehabbing his knee and came off the bench for the next seven. Some nights he didn¡¯t even play 25 minutes. He¡¯s moved into the starting lineup the last eight contests but is still only averaging 11.7 points, fourth on the team.
"We¡¯re a well-balanced team, and every night there¡¯s going to be a different scorer that¡¯s the high guy that night," said Rush, one of seven different players to finish a game as KU¡¯s high scorer this season. "I¡¯m just going to try to feed him the ball."
Self started to worry that Rush wasn¡¯t taking his turn at the trough often enough.
"It¡¯s pretty sad three years into it a coach has to talk a really good player into being more aggressive playing the game of basketball," Self told reporters after the Jayhawks routed Loyola of Maryland on Jan. 8. "It that sounds like I¡¯m pleased with him offensively or displeased, you guys can read into that however you want to, because a coach should never have to tell his leading scorer to be aggressive."
The coach backed off his criticism two days later, but the message had already gotten through to Rush.
He¡¯s been much more assertive since the start of Big 12 Conference play, averaging a team-high 17.5 points in the first two league games. He had a season-high 19 points in last Saturday¡¯s win at Nebraska and followed it with a 16-point, nine-rebound effort in Monday¡¯s rout of Oklahoma.
It hasn¡¯t hurt that his knee¡¯s finally feeling close to normal.
"It got to that point a few weeks ago," Rush said. "Everything started going back together. I¡¯ve started jumping as high as I used to, and my explosiveness is coming back slowly."
He might even be ready for a repeat of the 21-point, seven-rebound performance he had the last time he visited Columbia as Kansas rolled to a 92-74 victory. That would surely have NBA scouts taking notice once again.