“I don’t have his number. If Brandon wants to get in touch with me, I’ll definitely talk to him about this,” Kansas State sophomore guard Bill Walker said. “Just because we are rivals on the court doesn’t mean we can’t be friends off the court.”

The 6-foot-6 Huntington, W.Va., native knows what is in store for 6-6 Kansas University junior Rush, who this afternoon will undergo right anterior cruciate ligament surgery performed by KU’s medical team in Lawrence.

That’s because Walker, who tore his right ACL in high school, is currently 41â2 months into rehab from a second ACL surgery. Walker tore his left ACL after getting fouled on a drive to the basket in a loss against Texas A&M on Jan. 6 in College Station, Texas.

“He has a lot of rehab ahead of him. He’ll start rehab right out of surgery,” said Walker, who proclaims his own knee “91 percent healed” from Jan. 19 surgery.

“I hope he has a high tolerance for pain. It’s a different pain, a constant pain when trying to work it (knee) out. It’ll be the worst pain he’s ever felt. I had days I almost passed out a couple of times. A couple days I wanted to quit. It’s a grind. It’s tough.”

Walker thinks Rush can be ready by the start of the 2007-08 season in November. Walker returned from his first ACL surgery in just 41â2 months.

“But you have to rehab every day, all day,” said Walker, whose first ACL surgery was performed by a doctor in his hometown; his most recent by Kansas State’s medical team.

“You go into rehab, then you have to go home and do stuff on your own throughout the day. There are simple things. You can take a coffee can and squeeze it between your legs and get the quads together. With Brandon’s work ethic, he’ll be fine.”

Walker cautions Rush must be mentally prepared for what’s ahead, taking a positive attitude into today’s trip to the surgeon.

“When I went into surgery, I was thinking about everything I had to do afterwards, everything I’d have to go through,” said Walker, who was on crutches about a week before starting the rehab process on Jan. 27.

“Some days he (Rush) will be so depressed he will not want to talk to anybody. It happens. He can’t let it bring him down. There are not any good days. You have bad days and days you just make it through, never any good days with this.”

Walker said even the simplest of rehab exercises cause pain.

“You do a lot of balance work, a lot of quad exercises,” said Walker. Entering KSU as the No. 6-rated prep player in the entire country, he averaged 11.3 points on 40 percent shooting (26-of-65) with 4.5 rebounds in 23.2 minutes per game in six games his rookie season.

“Getting range of motion back was toughest for me. It really hurts pushing through that scar tissue.”

Walker said patience would be important.

“When you get back on the court, you are two to three steps slower than you are used to,” Walker said. “You must get it through your mind it’ll take time, step by step.

“You start running, then you get used to cutting and begin to trust the knee. But it takes time. You will not be the same player after a week of rehab. Eventually you will be the same guy.”

Indeed, Walker did not lose any explosiveness after ACL surgery No. 1.

“Right now I am lightly playing, trying to get back on the floor and used to running. You can’t overdo it. You crawl before you walk,” Walker said. “It’s been four months, three weeks. It will be a couple months before I compete again. You don’t overwork it coming back. Your muscles have to get used to the daily grind.”

Walker said he’s avoided feeling sorry for himself, wondering why he’s torn ACLs in both knees.

“You never know why, but I blame bad genetics. With Brandon … it’s just crazy how that happens,” Walker said. “Who’d have thought he’d go up for a layup come down and have this happen?”

Both Walker and Rush are regarded as future NBA players. Walker said he is intent on making that happen, injuries be darned.

“Of course we think about that. I think we are in the same boat,” he said. “(NBA) guys will now question, have doubts about us. As competitive athletes, we’ll use it to make ourselves better. For Brandon, getting into the draft and getting that close (before withdrawing after getting hurt last week) … having it happen will make him a better player. He’ll have to be a better player. He’ll be ready.”

Walker is not prepared to say any of his ordeals have made him a better person.

“I’m me,” he said. “It’s just made me realize how fast this game can be taken away, how you should cherish playing the game you love.

“People take this sport so seriously, it’s crazy. I’m a competitor on the court. I’m a totally different guy off the court. The big thing is to have fun every day.”

He said he’s looking forward to the day both he and Rush can have some fun competing against each other again.

“You know how competitive he is, no doubt in my mind he’ll be ready for the season. I’ll be ready for the first game. At the same time, I will not be able to do everything right away. Neither will he. It’s one step at a time.”