The Knicks suffered a devastating loss Saturday when rookie guard Iman Shumpert tore the ACL and lateral meniscus in his left knee during the third quarter of the team’s 100-67 loss to the Miami Heat in Game 1 of their playoff series.
The news was first reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports and confirmed in a team statement.
Shumpert will undergo surgery in New York and faces a 6-8 month recovery period.
Jerome Jordan and Josh Harrellson carried Shumpert off the court after he collapsed at the 6:04 mark of the third period.
It is almost impossible to overstate the significance of the loss of Shumpert, the team’s best on-ball defender and most athletic guard.
They will move forward into Game 2 Monday night coming off a 33-point blowout loss and without their best rookie and top wing defender.
