New York Knicks big man Luke Kornet will be sidelined for at least two weeks with an ankle injury, Knicks head coach David Fizdale told Ian Begley of ESPN.com.
Kornet suffered the injury during the Knicks' loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday afternoon. The 23-year-old has played in 23 games this season, making nine starts. During that time, he has averaged seven points and 2.5 rebounds over 15.2 minutes per game. He has shot 42.7 percent from the floor, 43.4 percent from three-point range, and 82.6 percent from the free-throw line.
Kornet began seeing increased minutes in mid-December, and on Dec. 27, he posted an impressive 23-point outing that featured seven three-pointers in a loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. Due to Kornet's ability to spread the floor, Fizdale has decided to insert him into the starting lineup, much to the dismay of fellow New York big man Enes Kanter, who has seen his minutes trimmed due to the emergence of Kornet.
In January, Kornet is averaging 10.1 points and 3.4 boards across 22.6 minutes a night while making 42.6 percent of his field-goal attempts, 39.5 percent of his long-distance tries and 82.4 percent of his foul shots. He put forth another 23-point effort recently, going 7-of-13 from the floor and draining three triples in a loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Jan. 13.
Kornet, who played his collegiate basketball at Vanderbilt University, went undrafted but landed with the Knicks last season. He played in 20 games as a rookie and registered 6.7 points and 3.2 rebounds through 16.4 minutes a night. He shot 39.2 percent from the field and made 35.4 percent of his treys.
Follow Us
Subscribe