A week after suffering a torn left ACL that will end his 2017/18 season, Knicks big man Kristaps Porzingis has undergone surgery to repair that ACL. The team confirmed today (via Twitter) that Porzingis’ procedure, which took place this morning, was a success.
While the Knicks’ latest update confirmed that Porzingis has undergone surgery and will begin his recovery process, the team didn’t announce a timetable for that recovery. ESPN’s Ian Begley had suggested over the weekend that the injury was likely to sideline Porzingis for 10 months, but cautioned that the team will set an official timeline at some point after the surgery.
Despite the lack of a specific timetable so far, we know that Porzingis’ torn ACL will keep him out of action until at least the start of the 2018/19 season. It will be interesting to see whether that knee injury complicates contract extension talks between his camp and the Knicks during the offseason. The 22-year-old will become eligible for a rookie scale extension on July 1, and he and the club will have until the start of the regular season to reach a new deal.
If Porzingis had finished this season healthy, I would have expected the Knicks to work quickly to finalize a lucrative new long-term extension with the former No. 4 pick after his eligibility window opens on July 1. However, the two sides may wait until closer to the deadline to engage in serious negotiations if the team wants to see how his recovery progresses.
With Porzingis at risk of missing the first couple months of the 2018/19 season, the Knicks appear unlikely to make any major win-now moves this offseason, opting to focus instead on the summer of 2019.