The Brooklyn Nets lost veteran point guard Jeremy Lin just days into the 2017-18 NBA season after he suffered a gruesome ruptured patella tendon in his right knee. As soon as Lin hit the floor, you could see him holding his knee muttering “I’m done, I’m done, I’m done.” It was later announced that Lin would miss the entire season, and the last thing the Nets needed was another injury to one of their point guards.
The bad point guard news for the Nets continued on Friday afternoon when general manager Sean Marks announced that D’Angelo Russell had to undergo a knee surgery of his own. According to Marks, Russell had arthroscopic knee surgery to remove loose bodies, and wouldn’t reveal a timetable for his return.
Nets GM Sean Marks announces that D’Angelo Russell had knee arthroscopic surgery to remove loose bodies. Won’t offer timetable for return.
— Howard Beck (@HowardBeck) November 17, 2017
Shortly after Howard Beck’s original report, the Brooklyn Nets released a statement confirming Russell’s arthroscopic surgery.
D'Angelo Russell Medical Update pic.twitter.com/Il0ACO5aXJ
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) November 17, 2017
If there is any silver lining to be had here, knee surgery of this nature is certainly on the favorable end of the knee surgery spectrum. This isn’t a torn ACL, or like Lin, a ruptured patella tendon, but the Nets are certainly going to miss Russell’s contributions on the court. At an unexpected 5-9, the Nets have been surprisingly competitive this season, and Russell’s emergence was a huge part of that.
Spencer Dinwiddie will likely move into the starting lineup with Russell on the shelf, and Isaiah Whitehead should pick up several minutes as his backup.
