Signs encouraging in Parker’s return
“To me, I’m not making a comeback. Yeah, I’ve had injuries. Yeah, I’m a different person from who I was as a rookie, or from who I was a year ago. But the thing I’m thinking about these days is, Who am I now and who do I want to be?”
Jabari Parker, in his story on The Players’ Tribune
The first time Jabari Parker returned from ACL surgery, it took him weeks to trust his repaired knee, to throw his body around with reckless abandon, to attack the rim with impunity.
Just one game into comeback No. 2, it’s obvious that things are going to be different this time around. Six days short of a year since his left knee crumpled as he drove to the basket,
Parker returned to the court for the Bucks against the New York Knicks on Friday night and looked as if he had played in the first 50 games.
He exploded to the basket without a second’s hesitation, initiated contact – he drew three fouls in his first 6 minutes of action – and gave the Bucks a commanding presence inside that only Giannis Antetokounmpo has given the team in Parker’s absence.
Parker vowed to come back better than the player who was averaging 20.1 points and 6.2 rebounds when he got hurt, and though it’s too early to say that’s the case, the signs are encouraging. He finished with 12 points and three rebounds in 15 minutes in the Bucks’ 92-90 victory.
“I thank the man upstairs I’m able to play the game I love,” Parker said in a brief court-side interview after the game, “and we got the win.”
His return bodes well for a team that really hasn’t had a big who can attack the rim other than the indefatigable Antetokounmpo, who scored the winning basket with 1.9 seconds left, and is dead last in the NBA in rebounding. The Bucks are the only team in the league averaging fewer than 40 rebounds a game. Parker makes them a better rebounding team just by taking off his warm-up.
Speaking of that, he got a standing ovation by the BMO Harris Bradley Center crowd just by shedding his warm-up and sitting on the scorer’s table before entering the game for the first time at the 5-minute 25-second mark of the first quarter. Less than 30 seconds later, he committed his first foul of the 2017-’18 season … and got another ovation.
He scored his first points on a baseline jumper over Enes Kanter and had all 12 of his points (in 10 minutes) by halftime.
“That’s one of my best friends,” said Knicks forward Michael Beasley, who played for the Bucks last season. “I’m just happy to see him play. Hate that it’s got to be against us. But I’m happy to see his work pay off, his progress.”
In truth, Parker attacked his rehab with such commitment and faith in the Bucks’ medical team and training staff that he probably was ready to play weeks ago.
Those who saw him engage in spirited one-on-one games with teammates were impressed by how well he moved, how decisively he slashed to the rim. But there was a medical protocol in place and the Bucks weren’t going to rush him back one day too soon.
When Parker reached 15 minutes of playing time Friday he was done for the night, even though his presence late in the fourth quarter might have tipped the scales in a close game.
“It’s always one thing to go through practice, do drills, practice five-on-five, scrimmaging, but I think the one thing for him is like this isn’t get it all done here in one fell swoop,” Bucks interim coach Joe Prunty said before the game. “Like, OK, now I’m back and I’ve got to rush to do this.
“We’ve gone through a process with him. It’s been stages all the way through.”
Parker gives the Bucks a deeper bench, even when he eventually starts – probably for Tony Snell – and he should help ease the burden on Antetokounmpo (37.2) and Khris Middleton (37.1), who are Nos. 1-2 in the league in minutes per game.
The Bucks are a better team today than they were Thursday. They got an all-star-caliber player back, just before the All-Star Game.
“I feel like he’s proved what he can do,” Beasley said. “I watched it firsthand.”
Finally, Bucks fans get to watch it again, too.