Celtics point guard Kyrie Irving underwent a procedure on his left knee on Saturday and is expected to be sidelined for three to six weeks. Irving’s knee was found to be structurally sound aside from the soreness, a good sign given his troubles with the knee in recent years.
A source tells Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald that doctors were happy with Irving’s kneecap, which had been an issue for him since the 2015 postseason.
“Now it’s a matter of how long it takes the soft tissue to heal,” the source told Murphy. “They’ve known that the knee is sound. The ligaments, cartilage and tendons are all fine.”
Within the confines of the timetable, Irving could be back anywhere from the first round to the end of the second round of the postseason. However, Irving is considered an integral part of the Celtics’ present and future and the team wants him healthy.
In 60 games, Irving averaged 24.4 PPG and 5.1 APG while playing improved defense.
Check out more Atlantic Division notes:
- Oft-injured Knicks point guard Ron Baker underwent surgery on his torn right labrum in February and just recently ditched his sling. Baker spoke to Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News about his future rehab steps. “Just depends on what staff thinks is best for me,” Baker said. “I’ll see when I get healthy in June. Because not touching a ball for four months and just jumping right into things obviously would be shaky. So obviously summer is going to be a big deal for me.”
- The Raptors have to make a decision on whether or not sign him Nigel Hayes for the remainder of the season. However, given Malcolm Miller‘s usage during OG Anunoby‘s injury versus Hayes’ garbage time minutes, Miller is the more likely candidate for the 15th roster spot, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports. Miller is currently on a two-way deal.
- Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson said that despite the team’s lackluster record, the season is not over just because the postseason isn’t in the cards, Bryan Fonseca and Anthony Puccio of NetsDaily relay. “Anytime we get (a win) it’s a good thing,” Atkinson said. “It boosts our morale; it confirms what we’re doing.”
You have an All NBA point guard team out. John Wall, Kyrie, CP3, Steph Curry.
Potentially Changes the post season significantly!
IMO PGs do too much work in modern offenses, and centers not enough. PGs are supposed to be explosive down the cleared-out lane, and they often have to finish with a twist… that’s hard on the connective tissues.
Haven’t heard anyone else say that though.
The reason why Centers don’t do enough is that there are not many of them in the L right now capable of filling a bigger role.
Who do you want to be the focal point of the offense, Wall or Gortat, Curry or Zaza, CP3 or Capela?
There you go– and so the PG carries the load. Used to be sometimes, entry pass and stand there. Pass to the wing and jog through the lane. That was a while ago, but teams now expect the D to be pressured at all times and that is going to fall the most on the guy bringing the ball up– they gotta go right away. There’s no 2Gs to help out anymore, as much as long straight-line 3&D wings behind the arc.
PGs have taken off ever since the hand check rule change. It allowed smaller players to succeed much more, unlike in the 90s and early 00s when the league was dominated by SG and big men. I can’t even imagine a guy like Iverson in today’s game.