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Spurs' Elliott cleared to play
Posted: Thursday January 20, 2000 08:07 PM
SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- San Antonio Spurs forward Sean Elliott said Thursday that he has been cleared to play, five months after receiving a kidney transplant, but team officials are skeptical at how quickly he can return. "He said he was cleared to play, and I said, 'No, you're not.' Not until I see things in writing -- then he's cleared," said Spurs coach Gregg Popovich. "The decision is up to Sean Elliott, not me. The doctors can clear him, but the ultimate decision is Sean Elliott's. With me, it comes down to whether he can help the team, not if the doctors can clear him." Elliott underwent a kidney transplant on Aug. 16, receiving the organ from his brother, Noel Elliott. "We perform transplants to allow people to have as normal a life a possible, and basketball was Sean's normal career," said Dr. Francis Wright, transplant surgeon at the Methodist Specialty and Transplant Hospital in San Antonio, in a written statement. He and kidney physician Dr. John Reineck cleared Elliott to play. "The possibility of an injury to the transplant kidney is small, and it's well-protected by a thick layer of muscle," Wright said. Elliott had been practicing with the team for nearly a month, but has yet to participate in contact drills. While he has joined teammates in conditioning drills, Elliott has spent most of his practice time alone, running sprints and stairs. After Thursday's practice, Elliott proclaimed himself ready to take the next step. "As it looks right now, they're going to clear me and I'll be ready to mix it up," Elliott said. "I feel pretty good. I'm in the best shape I've been in since I got out of the hospital. When I came back, I was surprised at how good I was feeling." Elliott, who has been serving as a color commentator for Spurs telecasts, missed several games and spent a few days in the hospital with a bout of the flu in December. Spurs media relations director Tom James joined Popovich in hesitating to say Elliott was completely back. "He's coming back, but 'coming back' is a very broad term," James said. "This is unchartered territory for us and for him. It's great news, but people shouldn't expect to see him in uniform Saturday night."
James said he expected Popovich, Elliott and Elliott's doctors to sit down early next week to discuss just how close Elliott is to returning.
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