Fulce

[Mods, Delete me please. 8/26/2020]

Nice article on Butler by Rosiak.   Got me thinking about Fulce.   Seems to me there hasn't really been any talk about him with the hype surrounding the incoming class and expectations for Jimmy this coming year.   Question for the board:  What will Fulce's contribution to the team be this year? 
I don't know how well his injury is healing, but with the amount of time that has passed I would assume he will be back at full strength next year.  If that is indeed the case, I think Fulce will have the same type of year Jimmy had last year -- slow out of the gate but after being given some time to adjust will be a big contributor.  Any other thoughts? 

[MR.HAYWARD]

my guess is as time goes by and the guys get into the gym Rosiak will have reports on their scrimmages just like they did last summer we will get updates I am quite sure on the 7 newcomers and Fulce, otule etc. 

[4thAndState]

Nice article on Butler by Rosiak.   Got me thinking about Fulce.   Seems to me there hasn't really been any talk about him with the hype surrounding the incoming class and expectations for Jimmy this coming year.   Question for the board:  What will Fulce's contribution to the team be this year? 
I don't know how well his injury is healing, but with the amount of time that has passed I would assume he will be back at full strength next year.  If that is indeed the case, I think Fulce will have the same type of year Jimmy had last year -- slow out of the gate but after being given some time to adjust will be a big contributor.  Any other thoughts? 

It will be interesting to see how Fulce progresses. I remember at last year's MU Madness, I thought he was the fifth best player on the court. I was expecting a good year from him last season until his knee injury. I know he has the potential to be a significant contributor.

[VegasWarrior77]

I think it all depends on how his knee has healed.  I remember the one game I saw him play briefly in he looked okay.

[Blackhat]

I couldn't believe how bad he was on defense and how timid he seemed on the court.   Hopefully that had more to do with the knee than his true capabilities.   We'll find out. 

[Thomas' Danish Delight]

my guess is as time goes by and the guys get into the gym Rosiak will have reports on their scrimmages just like they did last summer we will get updates I am quite sure on the 7 newcomers and Fulce, otule etc. 

Man, I can't wait for Rosiak's reports on the summer scrimmages. Those were like crack for me last year...I couldn't get enough of 'em!

I remember Fulce's game at Providence...without him, we would have lost. He had a very solid game, and if he can play like that every game this upcoming season, that'd be super duper.

[Golden Avalanche]

I couldn't believe how bad he was on defense and how timid he seemed on the court.   Hopefully that had more to do with the knee than his true capabilities.   We'll find out. 

I thought Fulce showed an aggressiveness getting after the ball that some of our later recruits never had. Fulce was always nosing around the hoop. Was always coming in at a different angle then other rebounders. I think he "gets" how to play the game and has a knack for it but we never saw the total package because of the knee.

[ATWizJr]

Agree.  Was at the PC game and "D" was a problem but he caused some difficulties for the PC defense as well and was a factor in our coming back to win from 13 down.

[augoman]

as I understand, his injury is the type that doesn't 'heal', and his performance is based on how painful it is on any given day.  so..., we may or may not ever get to enjoy the real Joe Fulce.

[lurch91]

It's too bad, I was really looking forward to Fulce playing when fully healthy.  This quote from Rosiak last summer had me intrigued:

Joe Fulce: He looked like the second coming of Shawn Marion on this night. Fulce flew up and down the court, threw down the most dunks and just looked to be playing at a different speed than most everybody else, especially early on. He also displayed a willingness to take the open perimeter shot, and knocked down a three-pointer in one game. He should be a solid contributor off the bench; MU hasn't had an athlete like him on the wing in a while (who's expected to play a significant role, anyway). That being said, my eyes told me he's shorter than his listed height of 6 feet 7 inches and lighter than his listed weight of 205 pounds. He's definitely going to need to gain some more bulk and strength to be able to play big minutes in the Big East. But failing that, Fulce really looks to be a solid addition. Fulce looks to be a natural 3. Because of his lack of bulk, playing the 4 might be a stretch early on.

[ATWizJr]

Is he healed?  Can he heal?  Will he always be limited by the knee injury?  Anyone know?

[Nukem2]

Is he healed?  Can he heal?  Will he always be limited by the knee injury?  Anyone know?

As "augoman' pointed out earlier, its an injury that never really heals.  So, his performance depends on the prescence of pain his threshhold of pain tolerance.

[PE8983]

I have no idea the seriousness of his knee injury or how it is healing.  But, if it is that bad and he can't play to the level of at least a competitive practice player, maybe he should go the route Liam is going.

[Nukem2]

I have no idea the seriousness of his knee injury or how it is healing.  But, if it is that bad and he can't play to the level of at least a competitive practice player, maybe he should go the route Liam is going.

I don't think that is going to happen.

[nyg]

Can't really judge or comment on his ability based upon his play in one out of 35 games. In the other games he played in minimal minutes or "mop-up" time, he seemed to be a liability on defense and ran in a sort of weird way, hard to explain.  While on the bench, he seemed to be a great guy, cheering on his team all the time, showing emotion.  Maybe it was the knee, but a whole year of healing and rehab should have helped, well maybe. We'll wait for the fall practices and see if he can contribute.   

[MR.HAYWARD]

as I understand, his injury is the type that doesn't 'heal', and his performance is based on how painful it is on any given day.  so..., we may or may not ever get to enjoy the real Joe Fulce.

That is absolutely and categorically incorrect.   What was said was it was an incrdibly rare form of break and they really had no real history to go by as far as a timetable as too when he would be back etc.  They said he will come back per the doctors recommendation of letting the pain be his guide.   never ever was it said that it will not heal nor was it ever said that it will always give him pain. 

[MR.HAYWARD]

A few quotes from the JSONline  in regards to Fulce...."Joe has an injury I've never heard of. The middle of his kneecap is fractured. Like, it's split. So on the sides it's still together, but in the middle it's split. And that's a very rare problem, so pain will have to be our guide. - Buzz

Again rare does not mean unhealable or full of pain forever

[Jay Bee]

Joseph just got his tattoo added onto and enhanced the other day.  Looks good.

[Markusquette]

Joseph just got his tattoo added onto and enhanced the other day.  Looks good.

I can't wait to see how it impacts his level of play. 

[bma725]

A few quotes from the JSONline  in regards to Fulce...."Joe has an injury I've never heard of. The middle of his kneecap is fractured. Like, it's split. So on the sides it's still together, but in the middle it's split. And that's a very rare problem, so pain will have to be our guide. - Buzz

Again rare does not mean unhealable or full of pain forever

You might want to look into it a bit more.  Split kneecaps are a chronic thing that do not heal on their own.  You need major surgery and more than a year of rehabilitation just to get close to normal.  It's not just a stress fracture that happened to take place in the middle of the knee, it's a congenital weakness that doesn't resolve itself and will likely effect him for the rest of his life.

That doesn't mean he can't play at a high level, tennis player Andy Murray has the same issue, but he takes weeks off at a time to deal with the pain.

[Henry Sugar]

From Rosiak's May 6th blog entry "Catching up with Buzz"

Speaking of Joe, how is his knee doing? He suffered a pretty unusual injury, by all accounts. "I think he has confidence with where he's at physically for the first time since he got hurt. He's not going home at all this summer. He's been working out twice a day, and I think his confidence level in his body is where it needs to be. I think it's been since Nov. 1, when he tore up his leg. I think he was probably confident in what he was doing in April in individual workouts, but he completed all of it. That's all over, now he's kind of on his own with Todd. Even the same with Chris. The last couple weeks of individual workouts, I think Chris may have turned the corner. Now, whether he's going in the right direction, this summer will tell."

But there don't appear to be any long-term ramifications as far as Joe's knee? "I've never heard of it, like we've talked about, but he has been fine. He has treatment every day with Ernest. I think Ernest has done a great job of being proactive with regards to this type of injury, how to prevent it from ever happening again. I think like any other injury, you overcompensate within the rest of your body, and I think that's probably what Ernest is most talented at – being proactive that once a kid gets hurt, making sure the initial injury doesn't cause another injury. That takes a lot of time with the kid, studying his body, the things that he needs to do in order for that not to happen. Both Joe and Chris have done fine."

[BrewCity83]

I'm no doctor, but sounds to me like it's something that he could reinjure but also could heal up and Joe could return to 100% strength in the knee.

[thanooj]

I'm no doctor, but sounds to me like it's something that he could reinjure but also could heal up and Joe could return to 100% strength in the knee.

i also think that fulce will either be injured or he will be healthy.  there is also a small chance that he will play hurt or be 100%. 
the weather today will be rainy or no rain.

[bma725]

From Rosiak's May 6th blog entry "Catching up with Buzz"

So Buzz says there are no long term ramifications, but Fulce says his knee hasn't healed and the hole is still there.

[rocky_warrior]

That is absolutely and categorically incorrect.   <snip> never ever was it said that it will not heal nor was it ever said that it will always give him pain. 

They didn't say it directly, but based on a Fulce's quote from Rosiak "-- They think it was probably a fracture that I had gotten in a car accident when I was younger," -- does that sound like something that's gonna' miraculously heal in a year?  two?  five? 

No.  Just have to read between the lines.