Wondering When and Where Danny Granger And T.J Ford Will Play Again

Bruno's latest Caught in the Web checks in with Danny Granger since today marks the fourth week since Granger was put on the shelf or 4-6 weeks.

Granger talked about his status after a light workout yesterday and appears to be working his way into game shape.

"I'm doing good," Granger said after a light workout Monday at Conseco Fieldhouse. "I'm going to start practicing on a limited basis. I'm really not that far away right now it's just a matter of getting my legs back, getting my conditioning and being cautious with it to make sure everything's OK.

"I can run and jump, it's just what I do and how long I do it may cause some soreness in my foot until it's fully healed. That's the scenario we're dealing with – how hard I can go, how long I can go and still let my foot continue to heal."

Man, I've lost count of the number of times I've mentioned a player working their way into game shape over the past few years, but it's been far too many for my taste. But more times than not that last little zone between say 90% and 100% healthy is evident until the player returns to play a few games. As long as the trainers keep Granger in check until that soreness isn't a factor I'll be happy.

Also, after the jump a few stories have popped up on T.J. Ford's recent descent down the depth chart. Recall when the Pacers traded Jermaine O'Neal, Ford's health was a big concern but that was the reason the Raptors agreed to take on J.O.'s monster salary. As it turns out, health hasn't been a problem, but instead the overal fit with Jim O'Brien's preferred motion-style offense.

Now we're left wondering when and where T.J. may play again, but don't get caught trying to revise history on that trade. At the time of the trade I mentioned that even if T.J. Ford didn't play a minute for the Pacers the deal was worth it because it broke up J.O.'s salary into manageable parts but equally important moved J.O. It was no longer working and J.O. plain and simple. He was sucking the oxygen out of the locker room. With him gone, other players, most notably, Danny Granger were able to absorb some of that fresh O₂ and continue to grow. 

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