the number of players who have missed games, Jone said. I dont know if there as ever been a season like this in football.The game against Missouri will feature a matchup of two of the leag

Virtually no one gets through an entire NBA season unscathed, but some players attract more attention than others when it comes to their injuries, often because there is a cumulative effect or because their injuries are so unusual. With that in mind, here are a handful of players to keep an eye on as the NBA season gets underway.Joel Embiid, C, Philadelphia 76ers Injury: Fractured right navicular bone (in foot) When It happened: first surgery performed June 2014; second surgery performed August 2015Embiid was selected third overall in the 2014 draft by the Philadelphia 76ers despite undergoing surgery just one week prior to repair a stress fracture in his midfoot. Complicating the picture was the knowledge that injuries to the navicular often dont heal well due to the bones poor blood supply. In fact, this injury can be career-threatening, if not career-ending, to big men (former Houston Rockets center Yao Ming comes to mind). Still, the 76ers planned to keep Embiid sidelined for what would have been his rookie season and were optimistic he could eventually embark on his NBA career.It wasnt to be in the following season either, however. Persistent symptoms in his surgically repaired foot led to a second procedure in August 2015. The second surgery was performed by noted foot and ankle specialist Dr. Martin OMalley of the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York. During the second procedure the two original screws were replaced and bone grafting was added to reinforce the bone and offer further potential for healing. A similar timetable of five to eight months recovery was provided by the team, and Embiid sat out a second consecutive season. In December he was cleared to resume some workouts and he increased his activity steadily through the summer.Now entering his third year with the organization, Embiid is finally taking to the court. He entered training camp claiming his foot has healed and he has been introduced to NBA-level competition in the preseason, albeit with a minutes restriction. Those restrictions are likely to continue as the team enters the regular season not only to gradually introduce the surgically repaired foot to the stress of games but also to adapt Embiids conditioning. Its important to remember Embiid played only one year at the collegiate level (Kansas) prior to entering the draft and is now playing for the first time in three seasons. As far as the healing of his foot, while it appears that Embiid is doing well now, no one will be likely to breathe easy until he proves he can get through a season unscathed. There remains risk until proved otherwise.Marc Gasol, C, Memphis Grizzlies Injury: Fractured right navicular bone (in foot) When it happened: injured Feb. 8, surgery performed Feb. 20Gasol missed the last two months of the season after suffering a non-displaced Type II navicular fracture in his right foot and subsequently undergoing surgery to repair it. Dr. Robert Anderson and Dr. Drew Murphy performed the procedure. The navicular bone is in the midfoot and is considered a keystone of the arch. It can be problematic for a fracture here to heal as the bone does not have a great blood supply, hence the decision to surgically stabilize it and improve the overall chances for healing. The fracture was nondisplaced, meaning the bone remained in alignment, another factor in Gasols favor when it comes to healing. At the time of surgery, Gasol was projected to make a full recovery.Gasol was initially projected to be away from basketball activities for 16 weeks, thus forcing him to withdraw from the Rio Olympics. The decision paid off for Gasols NBA season, however, as he focused on his rehab and was rewarded with clearance to return for the start of training camp. He did leave one preseason game in the middle of October with a scare, but it turned out to be bruising of an adjacent bone, not an aggravation of his original injury. In fact, Gasol was able to make it back for the teams final preseason game. David Fizdale has indicated Gasol will be on some type of minutes restriction (without saying how many minutes) when the season opens as the team exercises caution with his surgically repaired foot. Fizdale also noted Gasol is likely to get scheduled nights off during the season, another component of trying to ensure his health long-term.These fractures in the middle of the foot are never ideal and have been career-ending for some, but the fact that Gasol has played in games is an excellent sign. At 31 years old, he can be expected to have intermittent stiffness and soreness in the area, which could impact his minutes played from time to time. The Grizzlies have already acknowledged as much noting he will start with a minutes restriction with planned time off throughout the season.Blake Griffin, F, Los Angeles Clippers Injury: partially torn left quadriceps tendon When it happened: original injury on Dec. 25, 2015; aggravated April 25Griffin suffered a partial tear of his left quadriceps tendon, which anchors the large muscle comprising the front of the thigh to the tibia (or shinbone). The quadriceps (or quad) is responsible for running and jumping power as well as the ability to decelerate sharply. The injury forced Griffin to miss more than half of the last regular season and a portion of the playoffs.Griffin underwent a procedure on April 27 to enhance the tendon healing, and an injection of bone marrow aspirate then followed with extensive rehabilitation. The good news is that the time to recover has no doubt done wonders for Griffins overall health. He was a regular during training camp and played in the preseason without issue.Its worth noting that when Griffin suffered a knee injury back in the 2011-12 season (a torn medial meniscus), it was to the same knee. He also fractured the patella (kneecap) in his left knee in 2009 during the summer before his rookie season. Griffin was forced to wait a year for his NBA debut but he returned from the patellar fracture to earn Rookie of the Year honors. He is just 27 years old with plenty of playing time ahead of him as long as the injuries do not continue to accumulate. The tendon should have had enough recovery time to be a nonissue at the outset of the season although Griffins history of multiple injuries in that region of his left leg makes him a greater risk for reinjury, particularly the soft tissue variety.Chandler Parsons, F, Memphis Grizzlies Injury:?right medial meniscus tear and surgery When it happened: injured March 18, arthroscopic surgery performed March 25Parsons is still working his way back from his meniscus repair. Repair of the meniscus is always preferable to partial removal, when viable, because the meniscus serves as a cushion within the knee joint. Considering that Parsons has already had a microfracture procedure on the same knee, there is interest in preserving as much cushion as possible to guard against further degenerative changes. The challenge after a meniscal repair is restricting the activity early in the rehab process as the repair attempts to heal. Typically weight bearing is limited early as is flexion, or bending of the knee beyond 90 degrees. As the healing progresses, more motion is allowed and loading is increased, but a complete recovery can range from four to six months or even beyond.As of the start of training camp, Parsons was increasing his activity but was not cleared for full practices. Over the course of camp he continued to progress, starting with clearance for contact in the first week of October, but he has not yet been cleared for game action. His return appears close, but there is no specific targeted date. Although the reports of Parsons progress have been positive thus far, there is no way to know just how he will respond to game action. Perhaps the more important question is how well his knee, which has already endured two significant procedures, will hold up over the course of a full season.John Wall, PG, Washington Wizards Injury: bilateral knee surgeries When it happened: Surgery performed May 5Wall underwent two different procedures for his knees in May with Dr. Richard Parker at the Cleveland Clinic Marymount. He had a patellar tendon debridement on his left knee and an arthroscopic lavage on his right. Of the two, the procedure performed on Walls left knee was more complex and reflects a more serious condition. Debridement is a term that signifies a cleanup type of procedure of his left tendon, the removal of scar tissue and calcification in an effort to try to normalize the tendon tissue. Ultimately, the healing response triggered by the procedure and the associated rehabilitation should help the health of his tendon long-term. Lavage, the procedure Wall underwent on his right knee, literally means a washing of the knee. Essentially, during the arthroscopic procedure, the knee is washed free of debris that has accumulated in the joint.The 26-year-old guard was able to resume running late in the summer. He steadily increased his sport-specific activity up to the point where he was able to participate in all training camp elements. Conditioning in a return from surgery on both knees proved to be one of the biggest challenges. Wall played in the last five preseason games and ultimately progressed to 27 minutes of play by the time the preseason drew to a close. He expressed confidence he would be able to play upwards of 30 minutes in games when the season opens while acknowledging he might still need intermittent breaks as he continues conditioning himself back into game shape. 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By the time Tennessee and Missouri begin play Saturday afternoon, the Volunteers will probably have a keen sense for how another SEC game of material importance, being played 565 miles away, might turn out.Florida and LSU are scheduled to kick off in Baton Rouge a good 2 1/2 hours before the Vols (7-3, 3-3 SEC) and Mizzou (3-7, 1-5 SEC) kick off at 3:30 p.m. ET at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville.The Vols have a vested interest in the outcome of the LSU-Florida redo -- shifted on the calendar and from Gainesville -- affair because they need the Gators to lose their conference finale to have a shot at gaining a share of the East Division title and a berth in the SEC Championship Game.But Vols coach Butch Jones said players wont be scoreboard watching when they take on Mizzou.In terms of scoreboard watching, we dont ever look up at the scoreboard, Jones said. Thats kind of our mindset. You just keep your head down and you keep playing.His players need to be concerned only with things they can control, he said.Thats out of our hands, he said of the Florida-LSU game. Were playing a very team thats coming in here with a lot of momentum, very, very explosive, and its going to take all of our focus and concentration on playing Missouri.With their win last week over Kentucky, the Vols got back to .500 in conference play and now need wins over Mizzou and Vanderbilt their next two games to finish 5-3 in the conference. If the Gators lose at LSU, they also would end up 5-3, and the Vols hold the tiebreaker to get to the title game, where they would face No. 1 Alabama. The unbeaten Crimson Tide already has clinched the West.The Vols go into their final home game unranked in the media and coaches polls after once reaching as high as No. 9 in the country. But consecutive losses to Texas A&M, Alabama, and South Carolina knocked them out of the Top 25. They are No. 19 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings but were among teams also receiving votes in this weeks media and coaches polls.Their unranked status doesnt bother Jones.Thatss one of those things that we cant control, he said.dddddddddddd The only way we can control it is to keep winning.I am proud of this football team and everything that it has accomplished. Weve played the most difficult schedule, No. 1 in the country, and were 7-3. Were playing meaningful games in November, and thats what its all about.Injuries have had a major impact on the Vols. Jones noted that the Vols have lost five defensive starters since the season began and have started eight different combinations in the secondary.Its pretty hard to be consistent when you have that and when you look at the number of players who have missed games, Jone said. I dont know if there as ever been a season like this in football.The game against Missouri will feature a matchup of two of the leagues most productive quarterbacks, at least when it comes to producing touchdowns.Tennessees Josh Dobbs and Missouris Drew Lock are tied for the most touchdown passes among SEC quarterbacks with 21 each. Dobbs, however, also has rushed for seven scores to no rushing touchdowns for Lock.Dobbs, in fact, is a major factor in Tennessees running game, especially since veteran running back Jalen Hurd left the Vols after seven games. Dobbs is the Vols leading rusher with 470 yards and is coming off a 147-yard rushing effort against Kentucky.Missouri, which snapped a five-game losing streak with its win over Vanderbilt last week, gets its ground yardage the usual way. Running backs Damarea Crockett and Ish Witter have rushed for 837 and 575 yards, respectively. Crockett is coming off a 150-yard effort against the Commodores.We blocked well from the point of attack and Damarea, for a freshman, hes gotten better every week, first-year coach Barry Odom said. He works that way in practice.Im excited to see him throughout the week the way that he practices, handles himself, and then prepares the right way. Hes got a bright future. ' ' '