Not many players come back the same from Achilles tendon injuries. Even more rare: a player coming back from an Achilles tear the same year it happened. To the shock of many, including Gregg Popovich, Rudy Gay is showing almost no signs that he was completely incapacitated for several months after the January injury. So far, he is giving the Spurs more than they could hoped for on both ends of the court and much sooner.
On the other end of the faith spectrum is Patty Mills. After a little over five seasons with the Spurs, Mills was finally rewarded for his contributions with a four-year, $50 million contract.