Adding injury to insult, Knicks forward Danilo Gallinari left last night’s crushing overtime loss with an aching right forearm. It was not the first time the malady has surfaced this season, and it might not be the last.
Gallinari, who dealt with a recurring back injury last season that required surgery, left the 118-114 loss to the Kings with 1:16 to go in the third quarter and never returned. The diagnosis is a sore right forearm, and though X-rays were negative and Gallinari said he expects to participate in this weekend’s All-Star festivities, the news of his injury remains disturbing.
Gallinari said that he also experienced forearm soreness on Dec. 2 against the Magic (he missed the next game). Worse, Gallinari said the Knicks are not sure what is causing the pain and admitted that “the muscle in the arm is weak.”
“Probably with a couple of days’ rest, it’s going to be back to normal,” he said. “It’s not a bad injury.”
Gallinari is not expected to miss any games because the Knicks do not play again until Tuesday. But it raises a red flag that Gallinari, the Knicks’ most valuable long-term piece, is having injury problems for the second straight year.
Gallinari appeared hurt when he went to the free-throw line after being fouled with 1:23 to go in the third. One of the league’s best shooters, he airballed his first attempt. He shot his second try left-handed, missing that one as well. After drawing a charge on the other end, Gallinari left the game.
“It was getting worse minute by minute,” he said. “I was feeling weaker minute by minute, and that free throw, I had no power in my fingers. We’ll see. It’s going to take just a couple of days I think because it’s not bad like it was in Orlando.”
How does he prevent it from happening again?
“I don’t know,” he said. “Probably getting this muscle in my arm stronger. I don’t know. We still have to find the exact reason.”
Gallinari is scheduled to play in Friday’s Rookie-Sophomore game and participate in Saturday’s Three-Point Shootout. He said he would get treatment today and thinks he will be fine for the weekend.
“I’ll be there and I’ll be shooting the ball like all the other guys,” he said. “It’s not a bad, bad injury. And they told me, and I know that in a couple of days, it’s going to be back like normal.”