Rudy Gay Returns to the Court 7 Months After Shoulder Surgery

Rudy Gay is back in action. 

Seven months after he had surgery due to a dislocated left shoulder, Gay returned to live action Tuesday.  In his first basketball game since he left the Memphis Grizzlies lineup in February, Gay totaled 17 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists in an Impact Basketball game in Las Vegas.

The game was a nice return for Gay.  Gay was a factor in the game and he showed great presence defensively.

Nevertheless, Gay still has some work ahead of him to return to full form.  As Hoopsworld writer Alex Kennedy said, it was apparent that Gay still showed a bit of rust.

Gay himself conceded that he has work to do.

"I'm basically trying to get back to being the player I was before and possibly get a little bit better," he said.

Gay worked very hard to get to this point through several months of rehab after surgery.  Gradually, Gay built back strength in his left arm.  After some time spent being unable to shoot, Gay worked to regain his shooting touch.

"It was a lot of dribbling and lot of shooting," he said.

The Impact Basketball league should put Gay in position for a strong comeback.  Gay had begun to blossom into a very good scorer before being injured.  He had his best shooting season in 2010-11 (field goal percentage: 47.1, three-point percentage: 39.6, free throw percentage: 80.5).  The future can only be brighter for Gay.

Gay missed the Grizzlies' first playoff series victory last season.  A healthy Gay could be the difference in helping the Grizzlies reach the Western Conference Finals.  Further, an improved Gay could spark an NBA Finals run.

While the competition is stiff in the Western Conference, the Grizzlies are a promising young team that has great potential.

With Gay, Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol, the Grizzlies a formidable frontcourt. All three can shoot and Randolph is a strong scorer in the post.  Meanwhile, Gay brings the fire from the wing.

The Grizzlies need a truly strong scorer to bring them over the hump.  If Gay comes back better than before when the NBA season begins, he could be that guy.