Eye-solated Injury

The Suns had just begun to rise once more.

The head coach of the Phoenix Suns, Terry Porter, was fired and replaced by a player favorite in Alvin Gentry.

The Suns were back on a roll after averaging 141 points over there last two games in their new revitalized system,

And the trade rumors had abruptly ended with Stoudemire remaining a Phoenix Sun after the deadline.

It seemed as if things had finally started to turn around for Amar'e Stoudemire and the Phoenix Suns organization as a whole.

And then it was reported that a partially detached retina on the right eye of Amar'e would sideline him for up to eight weeks, after undergoing a successful surgery to correct the problem earlier today.

This was the same eye that Amar'e had originally injured causing a partially torn iris with no damage to the retina, in training camp before the start of this season when Boris Diaw accidentally poked him in the eye during a scrimmage.

That initial injury required no surgery to correct, and Amar'e didn't miss any regular season games while letting it heal in the preseason.

That was the injury which originally placed him in eye-goggles that were supposed to last the entire season.

However, the advent of Amar'e "Gogglemire" was to be a short lived one.

Amar'e chose not to wear the protective goggles past the first dozen or so games at the start of the season. He was more comfortable shooting with them off.

Besides, what were the chances he'd get poked in the same eye again?

Well, during the Suns second stunning dismantling of the L.A. Clippers, that very scenario played out.

Amar'e originally reported very little pain after this latest poke in the eye which occurred while trying to defend against a dunk.  But after examined at what was supposed to be a routine check-up, it was found that he now had a partially detached retina that would require surgery to correct.

The surgery took place earlier today, performed by Dr. Pravin Dugel of the Spectra Eye Institute in Sun City, Ariz. The prognosis is good and Amar'e is expected to make a full recovery.  But according to Dr. Dugel, the recovery time takes an average of eight weeks but varies on a case by case basis, and The Suns organization isn't looking to take any chances in this matter.

According to Suns GM Steve Kerr, there is a very real possibility that Amar'e will miss the rest of the regular season.  However, with the Suns currently fighting for the eighth seed in the Western Conference, that just may come at the expense of also missing the playoffs.