Richard Hamilton didn't seem limited when he scored 14 points in 30 minutes against the Celtics Friday night. Hamilton has a nagging groin injury and he says it was a "mind over matter" victory to overcome the pain and play.
"It's still sore, still hurts," he said after the team's shootaround Saturday. "Yesterday, I just told myself there's no way I'm going to sit out this game, from how the playoffs went last year and how they whipped us the first two gamese. I kind of just try to get over it mentally."
His movements are restricted and he's afraid to go full tilt for fear of aggravating the sore area.
"I'm taking shorter steps," he said. "When I talk to Arnie (Kander, the team's strength and conditioning coach), he always says when you're out there playing, people don't even know you're hurt. I tell people I'm faster than the average guy out there, so even when I'm hurt, I'm still just as quick as anybody else. There's certain things I can't do but I won't ever tell anybody."