When the Golden State Warriors signed Brandon Rush during the Las Vegas Summer League, it took General Manager Bob Myers only 10 minutes of watching Rush workout to realize he was back from his knee injury. Myers signed Rush to a two-year, $2.5 million contract after he spent a season to forget in Utah during which he rarely saw playing time due to rehabbing his knee following ACL surgery.
Rush is no stranger to knee injuries. In 2007, Rush was a part of a pre-draft workout run by New York Knicks when he tore his ACL in his right knee. After recovering from the injury, he returned to Kansas to play one more season before leaving for the NBA draft. Now, Rush is looking to be a regular off the bench for head coach Steve Kerr after looking good in camp and in these first two pre-season games. So far, Rush says the knee hasn’t given him any problems:
“It’s feeling pretty good, no swelling, no soreness. Everything feels pretty good.”
This is a good sign for Rush and the Warriors. Rush has proven to be an effective perimeter defender and they need him to be an all-around player in their second unit this season. Rush has been through the rigors of battling back from an ACL injury before and was even more prepared for the rehab process this time around:
“I knew it was going to take a while to try to get my timing back and try to get some kind of rhythm going, but it’s coming along well.”
Rush will be part of a second unit that struggled to produce last season and with the addition of Shaun Livingston and Leandro Barbosa, the Warriors finally have some decent depth on the perimeter. If Kerr applies any Greg Popovich tactics and starts limiting minutes, the second unit, including Rush will be counted on to perform on a consistent basis this upcoming year.
Rush is known more for his defensive prowess, but in the 2011-12 season with the Warriors, he averaged 9.8 points and 3.9 rebounds per game. If healthy, Rush could be one of the better free agent acquisitions this summer.