The New York Knicks, like many teams around the NBA, are shorthanded right now due to a number of players in health and safety protocols (although they just got Obi Toppin cleared and will hopefully get RJ Barrett back before Christmas). Compounding their COVID absences are injuries that have also depleted their backcourt to the point that Kemba Walker started in their last game after being completely removed from the rotation earlier in the month.
That point guard crunch will continue for some time, it appears, as Derrick Rose’s ankle injury required surgery on Wednesday, and the Knicks announced he will be out for at least eight week before he is re-evaluated.
Derrick Rose underwent successful surgery on his right ankle today at the Hospital for Special Surgery. He will be re-evaluated in eight weeks.
— NY_KnicksPR (@NY_KnicksPR) December 23, 2021
With Rose out, being able to get something out of Walker would be big for the Knicks, because if not it shifts considerable burden on Immanuel Quickley and Alec Burks — along with off-guards like Barrett and Evan Fournier — to carry the creative load for the team. For a team trying to find some semblance of an offensive identity, particularly with Julius Randle mired in a season-long shooting slump, Rose’s absence is big. Until Quickley, who went into protocols on Dec. 18, returns, the Knicks figure to have to give Walker some extended burn to try and prove he can be a positive contributor when they get closer to full strength once guys clear protocols.