The New York Knicks have been without RJ Barrett since Dec. 27 when he left the Mavericks game after two minutes with a finger injury. It was revealed that he suffered a right finger laceration and would be out for a “week or so” per Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News.
It’s been over a week since the injury occurred and Barrett will be out for the Knicks’ fifth-straight game on Friday against the Raptors. Including the loss to Dallas, New York is 3-2 in games played without Barrett during this stretch.
When the injury happened, Barrett was being guarded by Luka Doncic and it initially seemed as if when Doncic knocked the ball out of Barrett’s hands, his hand hit Barrett’s right hand and caused the laceration. Barrett walked off the court with a bloodied finger and didn’t return.
However, ahead of New York’s game in Toronto, Barrett spoke with The Athletic’s Fred Katz and said that Doncic’s hand didn’t cause the laceration. Instead, it was his own.
Spoke with RJ Barrett this morning in Toronto. RJ said Luka's hand isn't what caused his laceration. RJ's left hand knocked into his right one, which dislocated a finger in his right hand. When it dislocated, the bone cut through his hand. He got six stitches, which are still in.
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) January 6, 2023
Knicks’ RJ Barrett set to have stitches removed from finger laceration injury this week
Even if it was Luka Doncic’s hand that caused the laceration, it clearly wasn’t intentional. He was simply going for the ball and RJ Barrett unfortunately suffered an injury because of it.
The good news is that according to Barrett, the only thing that’s holding him back are the six stitches. He told Fred Katz that he’s going to see a doctor “later this week” to get the stitches out and when he has them removed, he won’t need a lot of time to ramp-up to return to the court because he’s been working out and shooting in the meantime.
Looking ahead past Toronto, New York will have two days off before hosting Giannis Antetokounmpo and Milwaukee on Monday. On Wednesday, Indiana will visit MSG. It’s too soon to say that Barrett will be back in the starting lineup by the Bucks game (which could still happen), but maybe his return could come against the Pacers.
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