Small forward Carmelo Anthony has had quite the year with the New York Knicks; media coverage, all-star profiling, and fans shouting his name. What more could you want when playing at Madison Square Garden? Unfortunately, things aren’t always what they seem as the highly anticipated New York Knicks failed to make any good out of the 2014-2015 season thus far. Sitting at a dismal 10-43, the Knicks thought they were going in the right direction with an experienced player turned head-coach in Derek Fisher and savvy basketball legend, Phil Jackson at the helm. A staff that was accustomed to winning in Los Angeles can’t seem to find their stride 3,000 miles away from their championships. What has become a memory to them is now their downfall as the brutally vocal New York market expects results fast. To make matters worse, the only player who gave the fans a reason to visit the Garden (Carmelo Anthony) was shut down Wednesday (Feb 19th). Prior to being shut down, he played in Sundays All-Star game held at the Garden and played for a surprising 30 minutes. What some described as “playing for pride,” other would say he “played for stupidity” as he could have stopped his season at any given point before the All-Star break, giving him plenty of time to start rehab early. Feeling the need to play host, has come with a lot of scrutiny to the front office, coaches, team, and Carmelo himself.
This is the fourth of the last five years that Anthony has ended his season with an injury: tears in his shoulder, elbow injuries, and arthroscopic knee surgery (left knee). He can now add the other knee to his resume as he will undergo a knee patella tendon debridement and repair. This tongue twisting injury will require Anthony to be out for 4-6 months, with a hope to have him back for the summer camps. The patellar tendon works with the muscles in front of the thigh, and helps straighten the leg. This tendon is attached to the bottom of the kneecap, using the quadriceps muscles, and quadriceps tendon to work together and straighten the knee. The tears of the patellar tendon can either be partial or complete; partial tears result in some of the soft tissue being affected but the parts to straighten the knee are in one piece. A complete tear has the soft tissue in two pieces, causing the separation to be from the kneecap. He will most likely undergo arthroscopic surgery, where a camera will be placed inside the knee to give the doctors a clear view as to what is going on. The bad tissue will be removed with the help of small incisions being applied to the knee. What might be considered long in the sports world, the procedure will last as long as Carmelo’s time on the basketball court Sunday; 30 minutes. Fans who are unhappy now, will eventually have a positive outlook on the situation as Anthony will come back better than ever.
The injury is very common in individuals who participate in running and jumping sports. Basketball is notorious in beating up players knees as the constant running and jumping up and down the court can become very taxing to a player down the stretch of their career. It is estimated that 1.6 million injuries occur with basketball each year, with the most common being ankle sprains, knee injuries, and stress fractures. The controversy and media coverage will continue on the issue throughout the rest of the season and into the summer. Stay tuned for what comes next on Carmelo Anthony as he enters the rehabilitation process by the summer.
If you have experienced any pain in the knee, or any other parts of the body, then it is highly recommended to request a consultation with Dr. Palumbo, and we’ll work with you to explore your best options.