When Eddy Curry hobbled off the Garden floor Wednesday, the agony in his strained left calf told him he’d miss at least 10 games – maybe twice as much. Although appears Curry and the Knicks got off lucky, it does seem likely he’ll miss at least one game – tonight’s showdown at the Garden with the Heat and Shaquille O’Neal.
Monday in Miami, O’Neal didn’t play, but the Knicks still fell behind 29-3 on their way to a 101-83 mauling. O’Neal finally returned from his long injury layoff Wednesday, but now it’s Curry who’s hurt, officially listed as questionable but highly unlikely to play in the rematch.
“It really [stinks], especially after the first half [I was having]. I’m in a good groove, I get to go against Shaq, I’m feeling great, and then this happens,” said Curry, who left the 112-107 loss to the Suns with 10:40 to play. “It’s tough, but I’m still feeling good. Hopefully the pain goes away and I can play.
“It’s frustrating to be injured, period. I just hope I can hurry up and get through it. [But] when it first happened, the first thing I’m thinking is 10-20 games, it felt so bad. Once the adrenaline wore off and I got to the locker room [and] iced it up, it felt a lot better.”
Although point guard Stephon Marbury – who missed Wednesday’s game with knee tendinitis – reiterated that he’ll be ready to go, the news on Curry wasn’t as optimistic.
“We’ll see. Neither practiced [yesterday],” coach Isiah Thomas said.
“It probably looks doubtful,” Thomas added of Curry.
Asked if he’d consider giving Curry the night off even if he’s cleared to play, just as a precautionary measure, Thomas deferred to the trainers and team doctor Lisa Callahan.
“I’ll let the doctors decide that. Whatever they tell me that’s what we’ll do. It’ll be the medical staff’s decision whether he plays or not,” Thomas said. “It’ll be a huge loss, but we’ll get by.”
That remains to be seen. If Curry can’t go, the Knicks likely will start Jerome James in his place, though Channing Frye is a possibility. Thomas would not say who he would start.
O’Neal has said the 6-foot-11, 285-pound Curry could be his heir apparent someday. Curry is no O’Neal, but he has had an epiphany this season as a scoring force.
Curry is averaging a team-high 19.4 points, third best among centers behind only Western Conference stars Yao Ming (25.9) and Amare Stoudemire (19.9). And Curry’s shooting percentage – second on the team to David Lee – is fourth-best in the NBA. Just 24 years old last month, he already has made himself indispensable.
“I don’t want to take any games off. [Tonight] is a game I think we can win and we definitely have a better chance if I’m able to play,” said Curry, adding the pain subsided somewhat but the stiffness remained. “It makes it difficult because I want to rush myself out there and play, but I’ve got to be smart about it, see how it feels.
“You could hurt yourself [even] if you’re 100 percent playing against Shaq. I want to be able to go out and be effective; I don’t want to just go out and be a body. If I feel like I’m able to use my strength against him, I’ll play.”
O’Neal, coming off the bench after missing 35 games while recovering from knee surgery, had five points and five boards in 14 minutes Wednesday.
“He’s Shaq,” Thomas said with a shrug. “When he stands in that door, he takes up the whole door. When he stands in front of somebody you can’t see them. He’s a big man. That’s the Shaq effect: It has nothing to do with points and rebounds; he’s a big ol’ dude standing there.”