Zoubek breaks foot--again

[Jumbo]

Who was that hack the Virginia Tech Hoagies threw out there a few years ago? He was on the football team and hardly ever did anything right on the court - until they played Duke. Then he sort of went off on us.

Who was he?

-EarlJam

Jeff King.

[sandinmyshoes]

It just seems like some kids get more than their fair share of injuries.

[du_bb1]

V Tech player was jeff King---actually did a fairly good job w BB---with the panthers now

[BlueDevilBaby]

Its the Nikes.

I agree with you and crap is right. Hope you have a quick recovery, Z. (By the way, I loved the Z cheer with the hands the other night during the Cornell game. I had not noticed it on TV during prior games.)

[UrinalCake]

Jeff King... I remember that game. It's not an uncommon practice to use thugs. Temple did it a couple years ago, when John "I'm the only person uglier than Gene Keady" Chaney sent him in to break that guy's arm.

Duke's toughness was already being questioned even before Z's injury. I'm certain that all of our opponents are going to try to beat us around for the rest of the season.

I'd rather not have Taylor or Kyle playing center, I mean yes they are among our tallest players, but it's not their game. Is it worth it for either of them to expend all that energy on the defensive end at the expense of their offense? I'd rather have McClure and Thomas guarding the opposing team's center. Just my 2 cents.

[dukejunkie]

If this is the same injury hopefully a coach or even a parent comes to their senses and shuts him down for the year. It seems Duke plays injured kids without publishing details and then we end up seeing them on the operating table after the season. Zoubek needs to get healthy and focus on next year. Duke needs to move on without him and figure out a solution.

Does anyone know if he would be eligible for a redshirt year? I think there was recently a rule change that might allow this. For a slow developer like himself, this might actually help both him and the team over the long term.

[grossbus]

they don't want to come to Duke and break their feet.

[OZZIE4DUKE]

(By the way, I loved the Z cheer with the hands the other night during the Cornell game. I had not noticed it on TV during prior games.)

The Crazies have been doing it since early last season. Of course, Z has to be in the game for it to be done (other than during warm ups which aren't on television).

[greybeard]

Zoubek was playing with a specially casted plastic base in his shoe. He might have been "healed" as far as Xrays go, but he was far from healed. Did he look like he was comfortable on his feet to any of you? Don't tell me, "the guy's gawky anyway."

No way he was healed from having broken a bone in his foot through and through in three places, one near the joint mid foot, which does not move as much as say an elbow, but does move.

Zoub needs to spend some time with his body, learning how his hips work and how they can work better, learning how the alignment of his feet are affected by his hips, his pelvis, his toes, etc, and learning how those parts and others can work in better sync. Heck, we all need to be learning about that. Movement is an essential part of life; why anyone would take it for granted, or work on body parts in isolation based upon other's directions with no greater understanding for themselves is understandable given our cultural paradigm--go to an expert and they will make it "better."

It is, however, silliness if you bother to think about it. You can begin doing it now and grow in the process, or wait for the pain. Nature knows no ohter options.

Having blown out my knee, only to come back and get my "chance" in a Xmass scrimmage against a really good club with a future Net playing for them, only to tear the ligaments in my ankle after five minutes into my run, then to get a second "chance" the next year as a freshman in college, only to blow out my other knee, my heart goes out to Zoubek, it really, really does. And, I never really could play to begin with, much less for one of the best college programs ever.

[365Duke]

I cannot wear Nike myself. Of course the shoes that the teams wear are probably not the ones off the shelf. That said this is crazy. How many 5th mets have we had break in the last 10 years. Its like we have the market cornered 10:1



Oh and get well soon big fellow, we will need you down the road...

[Bob Green]

This is really disappointing news. I've been very vocal on the boards that Zoubek would continue to improve with every game and be a solid post player by tournament time. Obviously, that isn't going to happen now. Zoubek needs to get healthy and focus on next season.

[formerdukeathlete]

I'm not a doctor. I don't know any specific info about Brian's break yet. I didn't even stay at a Holiday Inn last night. But Duke has a pretty good track record in terms of quicker-than-expected foot recoveries. It's obviously a good sign that this doesn't need surgery. That would lead me to believe that the recovery time should automatically be shorter than the 10 weeks Zoubek needed this summer. But then when you look at some of the other recent foot injuries, and how quickly guys recovered, it's not unrealistic to believe Zoubek won't miss THAT much time (depending, again, on the severity of the fracture).

hopefully this is a hairline fracture, which would re-bond within a few weeks.

[Jumbo]

If this is the same injury hopefully a coach or even a parent comes to their senses and shuts him down for the year. It seems Duke plays injured kids without publishing details and then we end up seeing them on the operating table after the season. Zoubek needs to get healthy and focus on next year. Duke needs to move on without him and figure out a solution.

Does anyone know if he would be eligible for a redshirt year? I think there was recently a rule change that might allow this. For a slow developer like himself, this might actually help both him and the team over the long term.

That's not fair. Zoubek's injury occurred in July. He had more than enough time to recover.
Zoubek is not ellgible for a redshirt this season -- he played too many games.

[MChambers]

a few years ago, Ewing had some sort of x-ray or something that suggested that he was vulnerable to having a metatarsal break. He ended up wearing some sort of insert for the first half of the season, and was able to remove it for the second half.
There was also some sort of story back then about someone at Duke Medical Center making breakthroughs in identifying athletes that were close to having foot injuries. http://www.ajronline.org/cgi/content/full/186/1/255
Lot of good this does us now!

[3rd Dukie]

Zoubek was playing with a specially casted plastic base in his shoe. He might have been "healed" as far as Xrays go, but he was far from healed. Did he look like he was comfortable on his feet to any of you? Don't tell me, "the guy's gawky anyway."

No way he was healed from having broken a bone in his foot through and through in three places, one near the joint mid foot, which does not move as much as say an elbow, but does move.

Zoub needs to spend some time with his body, learning how his hips work and how they can work better, learning how the alignment of his feet are affected by his hips, his pelvis, his toes, etc, and learning how those parts and others can work in better sync. Heck, we all need to be learning about that. Movement is an essential part of life; why anyone would take it for granted, or work on body parts in isolation based upon other's directions with no greater understanding for themselves is understandable given our cultural paradigm--go to an expert and they will make it "better."

It is, however, silliness if you bother to think about it. You can begin doing it now and grow in the process, or wait for the pain. Nature knows no ohter options.

Having blown out my knee, only to come back and get my "chance" in a Xmass scrimmage against a really good club with a future Net playing for them, only to tear the ligaments in my ankle after five minutes into my run, then to get a second "chance" the next year as a freshman in college, only to blow out my other knee, my heart goes out to Zoubek, it really, really does. And, I never really could play to begin with, much less for one of the best college programs ever.

Hey Grey,

Did you see this coming last week with your post, or what?
Man, you are good!

Seriously though, what a horrible deal for Z.

[mgtr]

This is a real shame, because he was making contributions. Fortunately McClure is back, and seems to be the same old Dave. Not tall, but he can rebound and defend. And somebody suggested that Taylor King had to step into that job as well. I agree completely.
I don't recall the details, but Bill Walton had a ton of foot problems in the pros. I remember reading that his feet were just not designed for the kind of beating basketball gives them.

[Oriole Way]

I think you're onto something. Elton had a foot injury his sophomore year (I think) and it was initially thought that he would be out the entire year. Boozer also missed significant time with a foot injury. And between Paulus last year, Marty last year and this year, and now Zoubek, that's a lot of foot/knee problems. I wonder if SI will start calling this the "Duke metatarsal curse"?

The good news is that in the case of both Elton and Boozer, their absense allowed other players to develop, and when they came back late in the year it provided a huge boost. Unfortunately, it's probably too late in the year for this to happen for Zoubek.

Carlos Boozer had the same injury, I think, very late in ACC play (second to last game of the ACC schedule against Maryland) in 2001 and was back for the Elite Eight. He had an astonishingly quick recovery, so perhaps something similar is possible with Zoubek. Obviously different people heal differently, and the break might be different, but who knows.

Having access to Duke's medical facilities certainly doesn't hurt.

[2002grad]

IMO, this will not hurt the team this year. In a close, important game, I don't think K would have played Zoubek more than 3 minutes. Therefore, maybe its better to get the other guys more playing time and practice defending true centers so that they will be used to it when it counts. Plus, Zoubs looked out of place with the more up-tempo style this year.

This hurts in practice and for Zoubek's long-term development, but I don't think it changes the potential for success this year.

[dukelifer]

Clearly losing a big man is not good for this Duke team and even the few minutes that Zoubs would be giving in ACC play- will be missed dearly. Duke will not be able to be as aggressive on D to protect players from fouling out and that will hurt a lot. Singler will have a bit of a learning curve in ACC play- getting used to the size of the opposition and the more physical play. Practices will also be affected. You have to wonder if Duke will play more zone or make some other adjustment to deal with this. But definitely not a good development no matter how you cut it.

[Billy Dat]

Obviously, Boozer's injury in 2001 was the catalyst for our title run. Leaving that one on it's rightful lofty perch, let me harken back a few years earlier to the precocious Elton Brand making a dramatic return to lead Duke back from a double digit second half abyss at home to thwart the mighty Heels squad of Jameson, Carter, Cota, et al. That was an incredibly sweet win.