MD RELEASED FROM HOSPITAL

DANIELS RELEASED FROM HOSPITAL
By: Paul Flannery
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The Celtics announced via Twitter that Marquis Daniels has been released from New England Baptist Hospital after suffering a bruised spinal cord during their game with the Magic Sunday. Daniels lay motionless on the floor for several hushed minutes before he was loaded on to a stretcher and taken to the hospital for tests and observation.

Team physician Dr. Brian McKeon said that Daniels had regained full function of his motor skills Sunday evening. The team expects him to be out at least a month, if not longer.

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That's fabulous news, that he's been released from the hospital. Like everyone else, I was extremely worried when I saw how little movement he had after sustaining the injury.

In the long term, I'd think he'll be undergoing a battery of tests over the coming weeks. As others have mentioned, I have to say that I also thought that this could (repeat, could) be a career-ending situation for him. Although a concussion and bruised spinal cord are distinctly different injuries, it was so similar to the play against the Magic in the playoffs, where he basically drove into the defender with his head and injured himself far worse than what the play seemed to indicate. Perhaps the structure of his spine or some other congenital condition puts him at increased risk. I expect that the team will perform the necessary tests to determine if that is the case or rule it out so that he can make an informed decision.

We'll see how that goes, but for now, his recovery of motor skills function is great news.

Ironically, it could be that his previous spinal history served in his favor by making him conscious of not trying to fight the inertia he experienced instants after falling. And I'm betting the danger of being a two-time victim will result in extraordinary analysis of his situation and monitoring of his situation in what is arguably the medical capital of the world. It's a terrible thing to have happened, but it will hopefully result in a long-term benefit for Quis.

And perhaps a third hidden plus will be the ovation he'll undoubtedly receive upon his first game back at TD. Something tells me that this is a period of time when he can use all the support he can get.

Sam

Go Quis...