It does not sound as if the Knicks expect Eddy Curry back any time soon. The center’s torn right plantaris muscle, suffered during the first scrimmage of camp seven days ago, is a symptom of a larger problem that seems unlikely to disappear.
“He’s very susceptible to pulled muscles,” Knicks president Donnie Walsh said today at the Knicks practice facility in Greenburgh.
That’s not good for any player, especially one who has battled weight and conditioning issues, and who is attempting to crack the rotation in coach Mike D’Antoni’s up-tempo system that requires players to run up and down the court more quickly than most teams.
Curry did conditioning work before and after practice with the training staff, but there is no timetable on his return to practice
“He’s been out a year and a half,” Walsh said. “He hasn’t played NBA basketball. There’s no way in the summer to simulate the speed out here. And what we saw in the [scrimmage] is that the team is at one speed and he’s trying to keep up with them. … Every time he went out and tried to play at our speed he pulled a muscle. So we’ve got to get his body to the point where that doesn’t happen.”
Curry played in three games last year due to chronic knee pain. Despite arriving at camp some 40 pounds lighter than a year ago, Curry’s conditioning was not on par with that of an NBA-ready player.
Both Walsh and D’Antoni said curry’s return to practice will be left up to the training staff.
“When they think he’s ready, that he can keep up here without getting hurt,” Walsh said.