Eric Gordon Thinks He Will Play This Month


New Orleans Hornets guard Eric Gordon has spent the past month rehabbing from right knee issues in Los Angeles, and he will re-join the team this Saturday. Gordon expects to make his return to the court this month. Per the Times-Picayune: “Hornets General Manager Dell Demps said the team won’t make a determination when Gordon will play his first game until after he goes through a couple of practices with his teammates. Gordon predicted Wednesday he will make his debut before the end of this month. Gordon said his right knee problems stemmed from having both a patella tendon disorder and bone bruise. It’s the same knee that Gordon had arthroscopic surgery on last February, which forced him to miss all but nine games after he was acquired in the blockbuster Chris Paul trade from the Los Angeles Clippers. ‘I had a lot of pain and all throughout my knee cap,’ Gordon said. ‘It shut down all my muscles around my leg from my calf to even my quads. So that’s what I was dealing with and if I would have kept on going I would have had to undergo possible surgery.’ Gordon was sent to Los Angeles a month ago to get more personalized rehabilitation work to help in his knee recovery and to strengthen his quad muscles.The Hornets confirmed two weeks ago that Gordon’s quad muscles had strengthened to 65 percent, but they offered no set timetable on his return. ‘Coming out here definitely was the best thing because I’m better mentally and physically,’ Gordon said. ‘They train you a whole different way and it just worked out. Now, I’m in position to really get back with the team and really get things going as far as practicing and getting back to playing.’ After playing the San Antonio Spurs on Friday, the Hornets play at home against the Indiana Pacers on Saturday. With back-to-back games, the Hornets are not likely to practice until this upcoming Monday. It will be Gordon’s first full-scaled practice since October after he missed the entire training camp. ‘I’m more than 90 percent sure I’m going to play before this month is over,’ Gordon said. ‘That’s what I’m striving for and I’m starting now to turn things up.'”