Waiting in the WIngs
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Season-ending injuries are always tough for professional athletes to handle, but even more so for someone as competitive as Corey Brewer.
It's sometimes easy to forget that the Timberwolves have been without one of their best young players for almost the whole season. Corey Brewer was already showing improvements to his game in the 15 games he played before tearing his ACL against the Denver Nuggets on November 29. Brewer, who started the first eight games of the season, was leading the team in steals, shooting four percent better than last season from the field, and had more than doubled his three-point shooting percentage from his rookie season before crashing to the floor and injuring his right knee.
Since the injury, Corey has been recovering and strengthening his knee to be ready for next season.
"I want to get back to full strength before this year is over hopefully," Corey said before the Wolves game last Friday against Portland. "I feel like my leg's getting a lot stronger, and I feel like hopefully I can come back pretty soon. I'm about to start working on my ball-handling and spot shooting, things like that, things I can work on and I can hit the gym."
Brewer, who has become a regular at Wolves practices running on treadmills and working with the talented Wolves training staff, said the hardest part about rehab is simply not being able to play basketball.
"Rehab, it's tough in itself, but when you can't even go play basketball, that's the toughest part," he said.
Still, Brewer has kept his focus almost solely on basketball in the three months since going down. Rather than taking time off at home or sitting on his couch honing his Xbox 360 skills, Corey said he's been here in the Twin Cities, working his butt off to get healthy. "I've been in the Cities, because I work out here with Dre our physical therapist," he said. "When the team is here, I work out here, and I work at the clinic on the days they're gone."
Brewer, who usually sits behind the bench for home games, isn't the only Wolves player out for the season. Al Jefferson recently joined him on the sidelines with a knee injury of his own. It may for a small consolation for Big Al, but Brewer has been a valuable resource in encouraging Jefferson through his injury exile. "I just try to keep him up, because you know, it's tough," Brewer said. "I know it's tough for him. I just try to keep him up and say, it's not going to be bad. That first month is the toughest month, and then after that, you're going to be back."
Who has been keeping Brewer's spirits up through his rehab? He said he's always in contact with his old teammates from the Florida back-to-back championship teams.
"Oh yeah, I still talk to all three of my roommates a lot, Joakim (Noah), Al (Horford), and Taurean (Green)," he said with that trademark Corey Brewer grin. "I talk to Al a lot, I talk to him all the time. He had like 21 points and 22 rebounds the other night, so he called me bragging and stuff. I keep track of what they're doing. I talk to Taurean, he's in Spain right now and he's been playing pretty well over there."
Corey said he enjoys playing against his old teammates and looks forward to facing off against them next season when he's healthy. "It's a lot of fun, you know, it's just different, because we know each other like the back of our hands."
Even though the disappointment of missing an entire season obviously stings for Brewer, there's a good chance he'll come back next season better than ever. The extra time off gives Brewer a chance to expand his offensive repertoire, build his body into NBA shape, and learn the game from a new perspective. Many players throughout NBA history have come back from season-ending injuries improved, more aggressive, and hungry for success.
"I probably won't be able to play this year, but I'll be back for next year for sure," Corey said with that confident smile that Wolves fans have already come to know and love.
It's sometimes easy to forget that the Timberwolves have been without one of their best young players for almost the whole season. Corey Brewer was already showing improvements to his game in the 15 games he played before tearing his ACL against the Denver Nuggets on November 29. Brewer, who started the first eight games of the season, was leading the team in steals, shooting four percent better than last season from the field, and had more than doubled his three-point shooting percentage from his rookie season before crashing to the floor and injuring his right knee.
Since the injury, Corey has been recovering and strengthening his knee to be ready for next season.
"I want to get back to full strength before this year is over hopefully," Corey said before the Wolves game last Friday against Portland. "I feel like my leg's getting a lot stronger, and I feel like hopefully I can come back pretty soon. I'm about to start working on my ball-handling and spot shooting, things like that, things I can work on and I can hit the gym."
Brewer, who has become a regular at Wolves practices running on treadmills and working with the talented Wolves training staff, said the hardest part about rehab is simply not being able to play basketball.
"Rehab, it's tough in itself, but when you can't even go play basketball, that's the toughest part," he said.
Still, Brewer has kept his focus almost solely on basketball in the three months since going down. Rather than taking time off at home or sitting on his couch honing his Xbox 360 skills, Corey said he's been here in the Twin Cities, working his butt off to get healthy. "I've been in the Cities, because I work out here with Dre our physical therapist," he said. "When the team is here, I work out here, and I work at the clinic on the days they're gone."
Brewer, who usually sits behind the bench for home games, isn't the only Wolves player out for the season. Al Jefferson recently joined him on the sidelines with a knee injury of his own. It may for a small consolation for Big Al, but Brewer has been a valuable resource in encouraging Jefferson through his injury exile. "I just try to keep him up, because you know, it's tough," Brewer said. "I know it's tough for him. I just try to keep him up and say, it's not going to be bad. That first month is the toughest month, and then after that, you're going to be back."
Who has been keeping Brewer's spirits up through his rehab? He said he's always in contact with his old teammates from the Florida back-to-back championship teams.
"Oh yeah, I still talk to all three of my roommates a lot, Joakim (Noah), Al (Horford), and Taurean (Green)," he said with that trademark Corey Brewer grin. "I talk to Al a lot, I talk to him all the time. He had like 21 points and 22 rebounds the other night, so he called me bragging and stuff. I keep track of what they're doing. I talk to Taurean, he's in Spain right now and he's been playing pretty well over there."
Corey said he enjoys playing against his old teammates and looks forward to facing off against them next season when he's healthy. "It's a lot of fun, you know, it's just different, because we know each other like the back of our hands."Even though the disappointment of missing an entire season obviously stings for Brewer, there's a good chance he'll come back next season better than ever. The extra time off gives Brewer a chance to expand his offensive repertoire, build his body into NBA shape, and learn the game from a new perspective. Many players throughout NBA history have come back from season-ending injuries improved, more aggressive, and hungry for success.
"I probably won't be able to play this year, but I'll be back for next year for sure," Corey said with that confident smile that Wolves fans have already come to know and love.
