Rush on the road to recovery

By Dylan Schoonover

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

The NCAA tournament is eight months away, but the media in Allen Fieldhouse were still eager to learn about the status of Brandon Rush and his knee rehabilitation.

Rehab is a place Rush has become familiar with. He’s there multiple times, three days a week, and he works on an exercise bike in between therapy sessions.

Rush said he watched the entire 2007 NBA Draft knowing he could have had his name called.

“It was kind of tough watching the draft, but I kept in mind that that’s going to be me next year,” Rush said. “I just have to look at it differently.”

Rush said he had talked a few times to Julian Wright, who is in New Orleans “livin’ the life.” Wright told Rush that he was buying a house for himself and a house for his mother. While Wright is enjoying the perks of the NBA, Rush has to start attending classes again Aug. 16.

Rush said he wasn’t depressed but he also wasn’t looking forward to going back to the classroom. He won’t be able to start running for another three months. He said that his therapists wouldn’t let him come back on the court until he was fully recovered.

Rush is busy spending several hours each day rehabbing his knee hoping to be 100 percent by the start of December. He said he knew that if he didn’t do the necessary exercises to help heal his knee, he may end up with the limited mobility of his brother, which is currently seen at the Kansas City ProAm league.

“I’ve been there, I had the same injury,” JaRon Rush, Brandon’s brother, said. “I’ve lost explosiveness from not rehabbing it right. He’s got to rehab it constantly.”

Kansas coach Bill Self said that another year in school could help Rush develop better ball-handling and passing skills. He also said it could give him time to address work ethic.

“I told him it’s no one’s fault. If it had to happen, it was better to happen weeks before the draft process,” Self said. “I expect this season to be his last year.”

Rush said he was looking forward to being able to dunk a basketball again once his therapists gave him the green light. He said he was feeling pretty good and even shooting a basketball a little bit. He said along with his family, his best friend Mario Chalmers had helped him keep his head up during the frustrating time.

Prior to the knee injury in May, Rush hadn’t had a serious injury since he broke his wrist when he was 10. Rush said he would be busy helping out during games and practices even though he couldn’t play.

“Coach Self may not want a lot of coaching help,” Rush said. “He’s already got five assistants.”

— Edited by Joe Caponio

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