Kyrie Irving Will Miss Rest of Season, Playoffs After Knee Surgery
Boston Celtics star Kyrie Irving will miss the rest of the regular season and the playoffs after undergoing surgery on his left knee, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Irving will undergo more surgery on Saturday that will require about four to six months of recovery. The Celtics announced that the new procedure will remove two screws from his patella.
In an Instagram post, Irving revealed that he has an infection in his knee.
"The hardest thing to do sometimes is accept the uncontrollable things life throws at you. You try consistently to learn, grow, and prepare everyday to equip your mind, body, and spirit with tools to deal with some of those things, but I feel when those moments arise they all give you a sense of unfulfillment, simply because it puts some of your professional journey and goals on a brief hold. It's simply a test of your perseverance and Will, to be present, even in the wake of what's going on. In this case, finding out I have an infection in my knee is definitely a moment that I now accept and move past without holding on to the all the what ifs, proving the nay-Sayers completely f***ing wrong, and accomplishing the goals I've set out for the team and myself. This season was only a snapshot of what's to come from me. Trust Me. "The journey back to the top of Mt. Everest continues." #StandingRockSiouxTribe Let's go Celtics!! Celtics fans, I look forward to hearing how loud it gets in the TD Garden during the playoffs and experiencing how intense the environment gets. Thank you all!"
Irving missed several games due to soreness in his left knee and then hoped that rest would have him ready for the playoffs. It showed little progress and he sought a second opinion from doctors on treatment. The team decided that he would undergo a "minimally invasive" surgery to remove a tension wire. He was initially expected to miss three to six weeks.
Irving's left knee is the same one that he injured during the 2015 NBA Finals. The screws that will be removed were implanted as a result of that surgery.
"The wire was originally placed as part of the surgical repair of a fractured patella sustained during the 2015 NBA Finals," the Celtics announced in press release last month. "While removal of the wire should relieve irritation it was causing in Irving's patellar tendon, the fractured patella has fully healed and Irving's knee has been found to be completely structurally sound."
Irving finishes the season with 24.4 points, 5.1 assists and 3.8 rebounds averages in 60 games played.
The Celtics are 53–25 on the season and remain in second place in the Eastern Conference. The team has been plagued by injuries to key players like Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown and Gordon Hayward. The team is hoping to get Smart back for the playoffs.
