by Phil Parker
Daily Lobo
As Lobo fans clamor for the latest news on their team's most versatile player, the question floats over Albuquerque like a big gray cloud; What's up with Danny Granger's knee?
Answers finally came from the man's own mouth on Monday when Granger made his first public statements about his injury. He said doctors have told him he could be out as many as six weeks, but the surgery he underwent on Jan. 10 was a relatively minor procedure. Neither he nor head coach Ritchie McKay have completely ruled out playing against Utah on Saturday.
Granger said it's all up to his doctors and his coach. He is already rehabbing daily - jogging and lifting weights.
The 6-foot-8, 225-pound forward tore cartilage in his knee when he went to block a shot on Jan. 8 against Wyoming.
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The press conference came a week after the surgery, and helped appease a rabid media and fan base that have been given little information about Granger's status since the injury occurred.
McKay said the team isn't being secretive, just following the rules.
"Because of all the attention, people want more information," he said. "We just can't give it. It violates federal law."
McKay cited the Student Privacy Act, which details what information can be released about a student without the student's permission. Sports injuries don't make the list.
McKay said Granger finally got behind a microphone because of all the media requests he's gotten over the last week.
"He just said he wouldn't mind talking about it," McKay said.
Player and coach were also able to snuff out any conspiracy theories about the program. Does the silence about the injury have to do with maintaining fan interest at a time when home games are drawing some of the sparsest crowds The Pit has seen in recent years? Are the Lobos trying to throw off opposing coaches who won't know whether to game plan for one of the conference's top players?
McKay chuckles a bit.
"It amazes me, the speculation that people get out there," he said.
The coach "no commented" the first question.
He said, as far as throwing off opponents goes, "There is no advantage for us with what other teams are going to do. If it were Andrew Bogut (Utah's center who leads the MWC in both scoring and rebounding) and we didn't know if he were going to play, we would prepare like he was going to be in the game. Everyone we play will prepare for Danny Granger, so it doesn't make a bit of difference."
From their end, the Lobos clearly miss Granger's all-around skills. They were dominant, stat-wise, against Air Force on Saturday, out rebounding the Falcons 28-9 and shooting 70 percent, but they still lacked Granger's game-changing abilities and lost 64-62.
