Stojakovic may miss rest of the season
Optimism for Hornet's return fading rapidly
Stojakovic may miss rest of the season

By Darnell Mayberry

Published: April 2, 2007

Hornets forward Peja Stojakovic could miss the rest of this season because of severe soreness and stiffness in his surgically repaired back.

Stojakovic, who had a disc fragment removed from his lower back on Dec. 17, returned to practice March 13 and participated in his first full court, five-on-five session March 23. But Stojakovic has complained of soreness throughout his body since returning to practice. On Monday, Hornets coach Byron Scott said Stojakovic might not play again after just 13 games this season.

"I was very optimistic about him coming back,” Scott said before the team flew to Milwaukee for Tuesday's game against the Bucks. "I don't feel that way now. I don't know if he's going to be able to play at all. I don't know.”

Scott said he was hoping Stojakovic could play in Saturday's game against the New York Knicks. But after talking with Stojakovic about his soreness, Scott said he knew Stojakovic wouldn't be back anytime soon.

"Just the way he felt the other day, the soreness, the stiffness,” Scott said. "I don't know if that'll go away this year. And when you haven't played that long, when you start playing you're going to get sore and stiff anyway. It's like starting over. It's like training camp.”

Stojakovic said last week that his main concern is not rushing a return to the lineup this season. Instead, he said he wants to be completely healthy so that his back injury doesn't burden him next season and the rest of his career.

"In order for me to play I want to step on the court and be confident and comfortable and have an impact when I step on the court,” Stojakovic said. "I don't want to step on the court and not be able to help the team.”

After signing a five-year contract last summer worth approximately $64 million, Stojakovic played in only 13 games for the Hornets this season, averaging 17.8 points and 4.2 rebounds.