The Sacramento Bee zu Doug Christie und Chris Webber:
Doug Christie's surgery may or may not relieve the pain that stabs at his left foot like a serrated edge just about every time he steps on an NBA court, but that's not the question. The question is why the Kings knew so much about that pain, and the Orlando Magic either (a) didn't or (b) decided it wasn't the most significant thing in the world.
Why bother discussing it? Only this: Somewhere in the answer lies the difference between Geoff Petrie and a whole host of the other executives in the league - and, perhaps, a glimpse of how the Chris Webber trade (he's already unhappy in Philly) might someday be viewed.
...
Christie's bad wheel was hardly a company secret. He spoke openly of it last November in this space, acknowledging he needed an injection to be able to play for the Kings in the postseason last year, and that, more often than not, the first few steps out of bed each morning were pure torture.
The man has plantar fasciitis, a chronic inflammation of the tissue along the bottom of the foot for which the only solid prescription is extended rest, which of course he can't indulge. Christie called it "the most frustrating thing I've ever dealt with as a player," and it was the undercurrent to every minute he spent on the floor with Rick Adelman's bunch through the fall.
It's also one of the primary reasons Petrie was willing to further put asunder the Kings' vaunted chemistry by dealing off Christie for Cuttino Mobley. And, as we squat here today, you'd rather have Mobley's short-term injury than Christie's obvious long-term problem on your roster, no matter the great heart Christie brought to his work at Arco Arena.
Contrary to some local opinion, Petrie isn't a genius. He misses on deals occasionally (Nick Anderson comes to mind immediately), just like everyone else who takes risks for a living. But in the case of Christie, Petrie did understand very clearly that chemistry does a team no good sitting on the trainer's table - and he is classically bloodless, most of the time, as a front-office executive.
On that front, Webber may yet prove Petrie a proactive wonder. He already has required a coach-to-player meeting with Philadelphia's Jim O'Brien after Webber took offense to being played only 28 minutes in a recent game. Couple that with Webber's fully documented history of injury (it's nobody's imagination; it's fact), and it is possible Petrie ultimately will be revealed as the guy who moved a tad too soon rather than fully too late.
It's the old 49er way. You remember: When they were good.
The wonder in all this is that the Magic took a look at Christie's medical chart and his age (34) and still decided he was the best player they could acquire with Mobley as the bait. It's now the decision they have to live with, as Christie, tired, in pain and unhappy with a reduced role in Orlando, prepares to shut it down for the season and have surgery to remove bone spurs on both sides of his ankle.
Nobody knows how long Christie would have gone on his bad foot in Sacramento, of course. Maybe he would have gutted it out for the sake of the Arco crazies.
Certainly, he liked the team and respected the organization enough to throw his best out there every day.
But Petrie knew better than to bank on that foot - and it's experiences like the Christie deal that make you wonder how much longer it'll be before the Webber trade begins to assume a true proportion.
* Classic "Whoa! Step Back!" moment with Webber in Philadelphia, where O'Brien is already dealing with the reality Webber isn't going to be happy for long if Allen Iverson soaks up the available shots and plays full minutes.
Pulled in the third quarter and not reinserted until late in the fourth in Saturday's victory at Atlanta, Webber said, "I've never sat that long in my life. I don't know what to think."
"I didn't know it was going to be an issue," O'Brien replied. It won't be the last: When Webber committed a turnover in the late going against the Hawks, local reporters heard Iverson snap, "The ball should be in my (expletive) hands." Nope, coach, no issues here.
Waren die trades wohl doch nicht so falsch?
