Players around the league have shared their concern and shock after the news of Kristaps Porzingis’ torn ACL broke, but it probably hit Carmelo Anthony harder than most.
“Yeah, it’s sad, man. It’s sad,” Anthony said when asked about his former Knicks teammate’s injury after the Thunder routed the Warriors, 125-105, on Tuesday night.
“I wanted to reach out to him, but I’ll reach out to him tonight. It’s just sad to know that injury, the type of year he’s been having, the growth that he’s had over the past couple years and even this season.”
Porzingis, 22, spent two seasons playing alongside Anthony at Madison Square Garden before the Knicks shipped Anthony to the Thunder for Enes Kanter and Doug McDermott in September.
Since Anthony’s exit, Porzingis’ production has risen with him becoming the No. 1 option on offense leading to career high in points (22.7 per game) and opening the door to his first All-Star Game nod, which now will be missed.
“As a friend, forget basketball. As a little brother — to see anybody go through that — but to see him have to deal with that, it’s tough to see and tough to watch,” said Anthony, who sprained his ankle against Golden State and left after six minutes.
Porzingis injured himself near the midway point of the second quarter in the Knicks’ 103-89 loss to the Bucks on Tuesday night. The Knicks have yet to announce a timetable for his return, but typically it takes between seven and 12 months for NBA players to recover from torn ACLs.