In high school I suffered from severe tendonitis in both knees. At one point it was so bad I could barely bend my knees. I endured years of physical therapy to go along with years of nearly-constant pain. This is a far different medical issue than what Tyreke is going through. He's reportedly dealing with a bone bruise and continued swelling around the knee. But while the injuries are in no way the same, there are some universal truths when it comes to knees.

First off, knee issues aren't the type of injury where you can simply gut it out and keep going. If your knee is messed up, pushing yourself further will only mess it up further. That's a big reason my knees got so bad. I was stubborn, refused rest, and tried to play through the pain. So any calls for Tyreke to man up and play through it are calls that should be silenced.

Second, there's not going to be a set timetable. If there's swelling, something is wrong. The medical staff can treat it in a variety of ways, but every knee is different. When Tyreke starts increasing activity, he and the medical staff need to see how the knee responds. If it begins swelling and hurting again, the activity level needs to decrease.

Third, I want Tyreke's knee to be 100% when he comes back. Running, cutting, changing direction, these are motions that are tricky on a suspect knee. There's an uncertainty, a wobbly feeling that anyone who's ever had a knee injury completely understands. Even when you recover and no longer have pain, it takes a while longer to fully trust that knee again.

I want Tyreke back, but I want him back healthy. No matter how long that might take.