Jermaine tweets he will be back before the end of the reg. season

[CelticSooner]

He may return but what's to say he won't just get injured again? Saying JO is injury prone is being too nice at this point of his career.

[Celtics4ever]

A lot depends on the mental toughness of the athlete in question.  He has not had a history of playing through pain.   This was all over soreness too.

[BballTim]

Doesn't the regular season end in mid-April?  I should hope he'd be back by then, since it was supposed to be a 6 to 8 week recovery for his surgery.  This tweet doesn't make me optimistic that he's ahead of schedule, despite Danny saying he looks great.

  Recovery from surgery usually means they can begin training, not necessarily play. He's already been out of the lineup so it will take a little while.

[Jon]

Let's keep in mind that he's 31.  The notion that he can bounce back from midseason surgery is not an impossibility.  

he is the oldest 31 yr old i have ever seen

Maybe.  And it's very likely too much to expect him to ever be what he was a few years ago.  But I don't see any reason he couldn't be as good as he was last year, which is really more than we really need.  

People love to write athletes off, but they can bounce back.  I remember last year when KG was cooked because he was 33 and came out of high school.  I also remember Elton Brand being labeled as done.  

Both statements ended up completely false.  

JO looked great in last yrs postseason

dude is done....and im not one to write people off often.
i hated the signing in the offseason and stand by those initial feelings now

He also averaged 13 points and 7 boards on the season.  

The playoffs were 5 games where he was playing on a team that viewed him as the second option.  

It'll be a lot different coming off the bench.  

I also don't get this "zero faith" in JO bit.  People act like he's been on the team for years and consistently disappointed us.  The fact of the matter is that the team continued to believe that he could recover without surgery and waited too long.  They probably should've given him surgery in October.  There's no reason to think that he can't come back and play 15-20 mpg, play some defense and grab some rebounds.  

[dark_lord]

Let's keep in mind that he's 31.  The notion that he can bounce back from midseason surgery is not an impossibility.  

he is the oldest 31 yr old i have ever seen

Maybe.  And it's very likely too much to expect him to ever be what he was a few years ago.  But I don't see any reason he couldn't be as good as he was last year, which is really more than we really need.  

People love to write athletes off, but they can bounce back.  I remember last year when KG was cooked because he was 33 and came out of high school.  I also remember Elton Brand being labeled as done.  

Both statements ended up completely false.  

JO looked great in last yrs postseason

dude is done....and im not one to write people off often.
i hated the signing in the offseason and stand by those initial feelings now

He also averaged 13 points and 7 boards on the season.  

The playoffs were 5 games where he was playing on a team that viewed him as the second option.  

It'll be a lot different coming off the bench.  

I also don't get this "zero faith" in JO bit.  People act like he's been on the team for years and consistently disappointed us.  The fact of the matter is that the team continued to believe that he could recover without surgery and waited too long.  They probably should've given him surgery in October.  There's no reason to think that he can't come back and play 15-20 mpg, play some defense and grab some rebounds.  

those 5 games are the only ones that matter.  he could average 20 and 10 for all i care.  what i saw in the post season last year, preseason this year, and his limited play this season tells me all i need to know.

not to mention the guy is coming back from an injury. u used writing kg off as an example....it took kg a good year/year and a half to play at a high level following his injury. 

i like ur optimism and hope im wrong and that JO can come in and do great things....but my mind is made up, toast! hated the signing then, hate it even more now bc i feel my feelings were validated.

[Rondo_is_better]

Thanks for taking 6 million dollars from us. Maybe you can play two games, block four shots, them sit out the rest of the playoffs. That'd be awesome.

[dark_lord]

Thanks for taking 6 million dollars from us. Maybe you can play two games, block four shots, them sit out the rest of the playoffs. That'd be awesome.

lol, thats what im saying

[pearljammer10]

I can't wait til JO comes back, plays great for us in the playoffs, and then every one jumps on the JO bandwagon and jumps ship. 

[Greenbean]

Not expecting much from JO and I dont usually take the glass half empty approach to setting expectations.

[Finkelskyhook]

Is he tweeting about this season or next?

[Greenbean]

I can't wait til JO comes back, plays great for us in the playoffs, and then every one jumps on the JO bandwagon and jumps ship. 

Well hopefuly you are right and I will admit I am wrong if it happens but what do you want peple to do if he plays well?

Continue to bash him? Of course we will jump back on the bandwagon!

[GreenFaith1819]

Well, all I know is that Jermaine O'Neal protected the rim just as good as Perk did...and he didn't mind blocking shots.

He seemed to relish his role, and not upset the flow of the team.

I will welcome him back, myself, once he's ready.

[footey]

Doesn't the regular season end in mid-April?  I should hope he'd be back by then, since it was supposed to be a 6 to 8 week recovery for his surgery.  This tweet doesn't make me optimistic that he's ahead of schedule, despite Danny saying he looks great.

Yes, Danny also implied that the reason he got the injury was due to him not being in the best of shape. Neither O'Neal strikes me as a dedicated athlete like Kobe, KG and Ray who take super good care of their body.

[greenpride32]

I don't understand why so many people are supportive of Delonte, Perk, KG, and Marquis through their injuries, but criticize JO because of his???

[vinnie]

Well, all I know is that Jermaine O'Neal protected the rim just as good as Perk did...and he didn't mind blocking shots.

He seemed to relish his role, and not upset the flow of the team.

I will welcome him back, myself, once he's ready.

What has he played this year, 9 games?