03/30/2009 - 13:50
An Update on the Injured Ankle
by Tyson Chandler

I just took my cast off today and had an MRI. They're going to check and see if there's fluid in my ankle.

I'm in a walking boot now and I'm traveling with the team. The plan was to put me in a cast for a week and for me to completely stay off of it. And then come out of the cast into a walking boot and stay in that for another week. Then, start rehabbing. So, I'll probably stay in this boot for a little bit less than a week and then start rehabbing to come back.

It's super frustrating, because it's that time of the year. When I came back, I felt like we had an opportunity to make a push for the second spot and also win our division. Back-to-back division titles. We went on the road and won seven straight.

But after about five games of the winning streak, I felt my ankle start to decline a little bit. I wasn't moving as well and it was becoming a little more painful. I could feel it kind of going downhill.

We still won a couple of more games, but I felt it kind of going south. I was talking to the trainers every day and telling them that I would play as long as I can. I probably played longer than I should have. I should have started resting it two or three games before I actually stopped. I was basically playing on one leg.

Then I went to the trainers' one morning and they looked at it. They knew what it was before. When I injured it the first time, I had fluid in it. That was the cause of the pain and the cause of the me not being as mobile as I normally am.

I didn't know what to do, because I felt like at that time it was important for me to be on the court as we were making our push. But I also felt like it's kind of more important for me to be healthy in the playoffs. So, it was hard for me to weigh what we were going to do, because I didn't want to sit out, but then again, I wasn't that effective anyway, because I was basically playing on one leg.

The second halves of games were hard for me, because we would warm it up before the game, give it treatment and immobilize it, and it felt good enough to play. But once halftime came and I sat down in the locker room, it would stiffen up on me. And the second half became really tough, especially in the fourth quarter.

LOOKING ON THE BRIGHT SIDE
Last year we kind of dodged the injury bug and we were able to go on those great runs. We pretty much were healthy throughout the entire season.

This year, I've been injured from the start. I sprained my ankle in the first game of the season, sat out a couple of games and then came back and played. But it still lingered for a little while. So, I've been injured the whole year.

CP is just banged up right now. Posey's been banged up the whole year. D-West has gone back and forth. And now, Peja is out. So, it's been a tough time for us.

But one thing I will say is that I'm excited about our record, only being four or five games off our pace last year when we were healthy. So I feel like once we get healthy, with the rest that I'm taking, we'll be OK when the playoffs come. We've got a tough schedule, but that will get us ready of the playoffs, as well as give us the opportunity to move up before the season's over.

I'm just consumed with trying to get back on the court. Yesterday, I was telling Coach Scott that it's really hard for me to sit on the bench and not be able to play. It's tough to not be able to get out there and compete. So, last night, I watched from the locker room. It's hard to watch from the locker room, but it's harder to watch from the bench, because you're so close to the action. I'm about ready to jump out of my suit.

Last night was a great game. If we can still pull these games out without a full starting lineup or Posey also, we should be OK going into the playoffs.

SACHA AND SLIM
My family is doing good. My son has made it past two feet already. He's 2-2, growing like a wild weed. And he's starting to change, doing different things. It's fun to watch.

Sacha's being a good girl. I think because I've been home so much, because we've been on a nice homestand and I wasn't able to travel, she's got a little bit of consistency in her life. I feel like right now, she's kind of turned the corner. She's turning into a big girl in front of my eyes.

WHY I TWITTER
Last year, they had a marketing lady come in to talk to us about dealing with the media and this and that. This was before the playoffs. She worked with a bunch of different people. She was telling us about twitter, and I had no clue what it was. She told us it was going to be really big in the future for marketing and as a way for athletes to communicate with fans.

Personally, I was like, "Huh? Why would anybody care about little text messages?" Then I was like, "Well, I'll try it to see what it does." So I asked the guy who does my website to set it up, because I didn't know the way it works. He did it and hooked it up to my phone so I could just text.

I don't understand why anyone would care that I'm at the carwash. But today, I posted that I got my cast off. That kind of stuff, where it's news, I can understand. But I've got a lot of followers now, so...

THE BENEFITS OF A COLLEGE EDUCATION
I'm like 0-for-eight years on the college bracket. I think it's such an unfair advantage that I'm always playing against guys that went to college or are fresh out of college and know college players. I don't have a clue.

CP is a freaking basketball nut. He watches college all the time. He watches everything. He had like three brackets and he placed first and second. I'm like, "How do you finish in first and second place?"

I might beat Obama though.

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