Kyrie Irving has missed several games throughout the season with left knee soreness, something the Boston Celtics guard has been dealing with over the last week or so.
Irving’s left knee has kept him out of the last three games, and he also won’t play Tuesday night when the Celtics host the red-hot Oklahoma City Thunder at TD Garden.
But that’s not the worst news concerning Irving, who, according to 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Tony Massarotti, is getting a second opinion on his knee and will eventually need screws removed from it.
My understanding is that Kyrie Irving is getting a 2nd opinion on his left knee, perhaps as soon as tomorrow. Bottom line: he needs the screws out. Knee is flaring up. He will either play thru it going forward or … he will get thee screws out and won't play at all. Stay tuned.
— Tony Massarotti (@TonyMassarotti) March 20, 2018
Yahoo! Sports’ Shams Charania also provided an update on the situation.
With lack of progress on his ailing left knee, Celtics All-Star Kyrie Irving plans to travel for a second opinion later this week, league sources tell Yahoo.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 20, 2018
If Irving is able to play through the pain, perhaps any potential procedure can wait until the offseason. If the pain is too much of an issue, or playing through it could cause further damage, then shutting him down now would make sense.
It goes without saying the Celtics have no chance to win the Eastern Conference without Irving. Gordon Hayward suffered a severe leg/ankle injury in the season opener and is unlikely to play until next season. Veteran guard Marcus Smart is out 6-8 weeks after thumb surgery and center Daniel Theis recently underwent season-ending surgery. Jaylen Brown suffered a concussion March 8 and hasn’t returned to the lineup.
Losing all of these players is a huge blow to the Celtics, and will put even more pressure on the young players to perform at a high level, including backup point guard Terry Rozier and rookie forward Jayson Tatum.
