Philadelphia 76ers President and General Manager Ed Stefanski announced today that forward Elton Brand will undergo surgery on his right shoulder, which he dislocated on December 17, 2008 against the Milwaukee Bucks. As a result of the surgery, Brand will miss the remainder of the 2008-09 season.
The surgery is scheduled for Monday afternoon at the Wilmington Surgery Center.
Brand’s MRI results were reviewed by team orthopedist and medical director Dr. Jack McPhilemy of Main Line Health System and Dr. Craig Morgan of the Morgan-Kalman Clinic in Wilmington, DE, who concluded that the initial tear of the labrum in Brand’s right shoulder is responsible for a considerable decrease in the range of motion and instability, both of which would not allow him to be effective on the court.
Following six weeks of non-operative and conservative treatment, including two weeks of testing it on a daily basis in live action, a determination was made that in order to reduce the risk of any further damage to the shoulder, surgery would be required.
“Elton wanted to do whatever he could to get back on the court and initially elected to forgo surgery in order to help his teammates,” Stefanski said. “He worked as hard as he could over the past six weeks to return, however the scope the injury would not allow it.”
Boston Celtics guard Ray Allen has been named by NBA Commissioner David Stern to replace injured East All-Star guard Jameer Nelson (torn labrum, right shoulder) of the Orlando Magic in the 2009 NBA All-Star Game in Phoenix. Allen will be making his ninth All-Star appearance.
Chris Bosh left Wednesday’s game versus Los Angeles in the fourth quarter with a sprained right knee. Images taken postgame revealed no structural damage. He will travel with the team to New Orleans and his status is doubtful for Friday night’s game and day-to-day for the remainder of the trip.
The Orlando Magic have acquired guard Tyronn Lue from the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for guard-forward Keith Bogans and cash considerations, General Manager Otis Smith announced today.
The AP reports: Three-time WNBA MVP and four-time Olympic gold medalist Lisa Leslie will call it quits after her upcoming 12th season with the Los Angeles Sparks. The 36-year-old center announced her decision Wednesday, accompanied by her 19-month-old daughter and husband. Leslie, a cornerstone of the league since its start in 1997, guided the Sparks to WNBA championships in 2001 and 2002. “I’m not going to pull a (Michael) Jordan and come back in a year or two,” she said. “For me, I feel good about where I am. … I just know this is a good time. I can still help (the team). I don’t want to be out there when I can’t do it.”
With tonight’s attendance of 21,720, the Detroit Pistons sellout streak of 259 consecutive games has come to an end. The streak, which began on January 19, 2004 versus San Antonio and includes playoff games, is the longest sellout streak in franchise history. The Pistons tallied 245 consecutive sellouts between the first game played at the Palace of Auburn Hills on November 5, 1988 and December 10, 1993.