PLAYER NEWS: --F Amare Stoudemire declared the first half of his career over and appears ready to go after missing the last 29 games of the season with a detached retina that forced him to endure three surgeries and left him with plenty of time to contemplate both his past and future. And for a player who has comeback from microfracture surgery and knows about rehab, hearing him talk about spending 22 hours a day lying face-first on a massage table for 10 days and all those hours in darkened rooms gave insight to a very difficult summer.
"The eye procedure was definitely something that was by far the hardest procedure I've ever been through in my entire life," he said. "Going through that was difficult, frustrating -- it wasn't fun at all.
"Every time I go through an injury, I try to make sure that I really focus in on what it takes to get better, so hopefully my second half of my career, which is what I think starting at now, will be a lot smoother."
--F Louis Amundson, who has a career free-throw percentage (43 percent) that makes Shaquille O'Neal look like Rick Barry, has worked hard on the flaw this summer and the early results are impressive. He was hitting both free throws and jumpers with more frequency in pickup games and during one pre-camp session, he nailed an incredible 96 out of 100 shots from the line.
Don't expect Amundson to challenge Steve Nash for the team free-throw percentage lead this season. But if he can just make a leap into the 60's percentage-wise, he'll be able to stay on the floor at key points in the game.
--G Goran Dragic was the only player to come to camp with a current injury, but he hasn't had much trouble with the left knee he sprained in a Sept. 12 game with his Slovenian national team. He spent more than three weeks away from play but reported no problems when camp began.
DRAFT PICKS:
Earl Clark, F, 6-10, Louisville (first round) -- He's the kind of guy who can guard the hybrid forwards in this league. He's played in an up-tempo system in college (for Rick Pitino). He's got a good body makeup and there is an indication that he can improve offensively. The drawback has been his motor and his attention to detail.
Taylor Griffin, F, 6-8, Oklahoma (second round) -- No, not Blake Griffin. Right school, right family, but this Griffin averaged 10 points and six rebounds a game for the Sooners and will have a hard time breaking onto the roster.
