I couldn't believe it when I saw the news that Dominic James is cleared to play against Missouri. My next reaction though, was how effective could he be? I'd be a lot more excited about today if he had been cleared one game earlier and could have had a shakedown cruise against Utah State.
Reading other posts here, most people do not seem very optimistic, given the very short time since he had the surgery on his foot. OTOH... if he practiced 90 minutes with the team yesterday, I highly doubt that it was the first time that he went out there and played full speed. I'm pretty sure he had some closed door practice sessions leading up to yesterday. Also, he's an elite athlete. Most of us cannot even begin to compare our personal experience with recovering from injuries to that of an NBA-bound player in his early 20's.
The best part's of Dom's game are his ball handling, court vision, his motor and his freakish athleticism, which is the basis for his excellent defense. All of them have to be affected adversely by the combination of his foot injury and lack of play to keep him sharp, but mostly his motor and his ability to defend and penetrate.
After watching our offense wilt and die against Utah State, I'm happy to have him back. Againt Missouri, we need all the fresh bodies that can handle the ball that we can get. I hope Buzz will do the right thing and not keep him out there if he can't keep up. Most of all, I'm happy for DJ, because regardless of how the season ends, a Warrior should go out with his sneakers on.
This is a miracle. However, what I'm most optimistic about is just the general confidence boost this should give the team...Wes and Jerel couldn't have been playing worse. If this causes them to step up and we are given 3 or 4 days off to rest, practice, and prepare for Memphis with DJ we become a very dangerous team.