MIAMI — The issue now for Iman Shumpert is how much of next season will be lost.
The Knicks suffered a crushing loss last night when it was revealed Shumpert, their prized rookie swingman, tore his left ACL and lateral meniscus in yesterday’s disastrous 100-67 Meltdown in Miami. The team estimates Shumpert will be out between six and eight months, which is a potentially major problem for next year.
Missing six months would take Shumpert out through October, and eight would take him out through December. The season typically opens in late October or early November, so whether Shumpert can make it back for the start of the season is unknown. By the Knicks’ timetable, there’s a chance he could miss the season’s first couple months, which would be devastating.
“That’s huge,” point guard Baron Davis said of losing Shumpert, before the diagnosis was announced. “He’s our defensive specialist, our energy guy. A dude who plays big in big games for us.”
While dribbling up court midway through the third quarter, Shumpert tried to dribble behind his back, planting his left leg. He went down to the floor, then grabbed his knee and yelled. Soon after, Shumpert was carried off the court by fellow rookies Josh Harrellson and Jerome Jordan.
“It kind of hurts your spirit when you see your best defensive player go down like that,” Knicks forward J.R. Smith said.
The talented, athletic Shumpert is a critical piece for the Knicks, emerging as a late-season starter and getting assigned in this series to guard Heat star Dwyane Wade. His absence represents a player and a presence the Knicks will have major difficulty replacing.
Shumpert’s injury also means he won’t have the offseason to work on his game. Some of his development will be stunted.
Last night Shumpert tweeted: “It’s part of the game. … I’ll be [back] soon!”
For the rest of the playoffs, the Knicks will have to determine who replaces Shumpert in the lineup. The obvious options are Smith and Landry Fields. There’s no question Smith is the better player, but the Knicks might prefer to keep him as the sixth man.
“For us to lose a guy like Shump,” Carmelo Anthony said, “we are definitely going to miss him.”
Shumpert is the latest key Knick to go down in the team’s avalanche of late-season injuries.
Amar’e Stoudemire suffered a bulging disk in his back, while phenom point guard Jeremy Lin tore his left meniscus.