Knicks All-Star forward Kristaps Porzingis needed to be helped off the court and brought to the locker room with 8:46 left in the second quarter after he landed awkwardly on a dunk Tuesday at the Garden.
Porzingis went up for the right-handed slam as Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo outstretched his arm for the block. Porzingis executed the slam but his left leg buckled as he landed. He crumpled to the court, and immediately clutched the back of his knee. Porzingis is “undergoing further evaluation for a left knee injury,” the team announced. He is going to have an MRI done on the knee Tuesday night, a source said.
He stayed down for a minute before being helped off the court. As Enes Kanter stood over Porzingis, the Knicks center, too, had a sickened look. Moments after Porzingis was helped off by two players without putting weight on his left leg, Knicks president Steve Mills and GM Steve Perry got out of their seats and rushed to the locker room. The Garden was eerily quiet as Doug McDermott was announced as his replacement.
Porzingis, the 7-foot-3 Latvian in his third season, is scheduled to play in his first All-Star Game, Sunday Feb. 18th in Los Angeles.
He has missed seven games this season because of knee and ankle issues. Porzingis last sat out a contest to rest his left knee two weeks ago against Golden State after landing badly in a practice session collision with Joakim Noah the day before. It was the same night Porzingis was named an Eastern Conference reserve for the All-Star game. LeBron James selected him for his team in the NBA’s first-ever All-Star draft.
Durability has been an issue for Porzingis. Entering the season, he had missed 26 games in his first two years with various ailments, including shoulder and Achilles tendon injuries.