Once a back to back scoring champion, McGrady was plagued by chronic back problems for years before suffering a microfracture of the knee. He quickly became an unwanted risk to many organizations. His name still had allure, but his injury proneness was avoided by several NBA front offices. Last year, McGrady appeared in 25 mediocre games for the New York Knicks. However, there were instances when McGrady was a flash in the pan, taking over games for short stints.
I know that many people aren't buying into McGrady's claims, however, I can't help but be enticed by his statements. People were skeptical of Antonio McDyess and Grant Hill as well, both of whom faced nearly identical situations to that of McGrady. I'm not insinuating that Hill or McDyess are the players that they once were in their heyday, but both have revived their careers in an extremely positive way. They have accepted that their superstar days are long gone and have become the productive role players that teams need to win championships.
McGrady seems to have come to this realization as well. He even joked, "I probably can't dunk on guys like I did against Memo Okur here in 2003. I hope that's not still a bad memory for Pistons fans - but I can still put the ball in the hole."
T-Mac does have a valid point. I'm sure many of you forgot about the game against San Antonio in which McGrady led to Rockets to an 81-80 victory by scoring an unprecedented 13 points in a mere 35 seconds. We all know that he has lost a few steps over the years, but the bottom line is that when a guy can put the ball in the hole, he has the ability to go off at any time.
Believe what you may, but I think Detroit will get some good mileage out of T-Mac.
I decided to give those of you who forgot the absurdity, that once was Tracy McGrady, a little reminder.
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