09-27-2004, 06:53 PM
Jamal Mashburn is out for the entire NBA season coming up. I always liked Mashburn and felt he was a very under-rated player and this trully sucks cause i've picked him every year when I could in fantasy, unfortunatly that included last season when he missed pretty much 80% of the season.
Quote:NEW ORLEANS - Former All-Star forward Jamal Mashburn will miss the entire 2004-05 NBA season because of a knee injury that could end his career.
Mashburn and the New Orleans Hornets (news) announced the news Monday, a week before the start of training camp.
The injury kept Mashburn, a 10-year veteran, out of all but 19 games last season after he underwent surgery to remove loose particles from his right knee. Mashburn said strenuous activity causes the knee to swell as badly as it did last March when his season ended. He averaged 20.8 points.
During a news conference, Mashburn acknowledged the injury could end his career, which began in 1993 as a first-round draft choice of the Dallas Mavericks (news). He also had a stint with the Miami Heat (news) before joining the Hornets in 2000 and making the All-Star team during the 2002-03 season.
Mashburn said retirement is a possibility, but he was holding out hope that he might be able to play.
"I have to remain optimistic," he said. "Hopefully, I can get better with rest. This is my livelihood. I have to stay positive."
The Hornets' insurance will cover about 80 percent of Mashburn's salary of about $18 million over the last two years of his contract if he is not healthy enough to play. Trading Mashburn remains a possibility because the insurance will follow him to another team.
Team trainers said several MRI exams performed over the summer indicated Mashburn had worn out cartilage in his right knee, causing bones to grind together and leaving a bruise and an irritation.
"I'm hoping with a rest and a lack of pounding, things will heal themselves and maybe there's a possibility in a year or so," Mashburn said. "I just have to take a wait-and-see approach. There's not a particular thing I can do. I've been trying everything. It's a frustrating situation."
With Mashburn out, Rodney Rogers and George Lynch will compete for the starting spot at small forward, Hornets coach Byron Scott said.