NEW YORK (AP) — Brooklyn Nets guard Jeremy Lin is expected to miss the rest of the season because of a ruptured patella tendon of the right knee.
Lin was hurt midway through the fourth quarter of the Nets’ 140-131 loss at Indiana on Wednesday in their opener. He landed hard behind the baseline after a drive to the basket and was in tears as he clutched at his knee.
The former Harvard guard was hoping for a stronger second season with the Nets. He was limited to just 36 games in 2016-17, mostly because of a left hamstring injury, while Brooklyn finished with the NBA’s worst record.
“Jeremy worked tremendously hard during the offseason and in training camp and was excited for the prospects of the team this season,” general manager Sean Marks said Thursday in a statement. “We feel awful that the injury will cost him the season, however our entire organization will be there to support Jeremy in every way possible throughout his recovery. Jeremy remains an important part of this team and will continue to contribute in a leadership role.”
Lin scored 18 points before he was hurt while starting alongside fellow point guard D’Angelo Russell, the former No. 2 pick acquired from the Lakers in an offseason trade. Coach Kenny Atkinson had planned to start games with both players, then split the playing time, so he had one of them on the floor as much as possible.
“Jeremy worked really hard to get back from injury, so we hope everything’s OK,” Atkinson said after the game. “You never want to see somebody go down, especially someone who worked so hard to come back.”
Lin was hurt in the fifth game last season and missed more than a month. He aggravated the injury about two weeks after returning and didn’t play again until after the All-Star break.
He had come to Brooklyn with a three-year, $36 million deal, returning to the city where he was a breakout star with the New York Knicks during his run of Linsanity in 2012. That lasted just 35 games before a season-ending knee injury.
