NEW YORK — Derrick Rose had another procedure on his right ankle Friday, this time to address a skin infection just as it appeared he was close to returning to the New York Knicks.
The Knicks did not give a timetable for Rose’s return, but sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski there’s optimism he can rejoin the lineup in one to two weeks.
The 33-year-old point guard, who hasn’t played since suffering the injury against the Houston Rockets on Dec. 16, had recently begun practicing fully after he had surgery on the ankle to remove a bone spur on Dec. 22.
The procedure Rose had on Friday was to address an infection in the area where the December surgery had been done.
Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said Rose wasn’t in pain but was feeling discomfort.
“He actually went through practice pretty well,” Thibodeau said. “So, just one of those things.”
Thibodeau said he had no details other than the procedure had gone well.
Thibodeau also said he didn’t believe Rose’s absence would change anything with Kemba Walker‘s status after it was decided this week he would be shut down for the season. Alec Burks and Immanuel Quickley were the point guards available Friday against Miami, with rookie Miles McBride a possibility going forward.
Rose helped jump-start the Knicks last season after arriving in a midseason trade, finishing third in voting for the Sixth Man Award.
The Knicks have struggled to find consistency at point guard without him. He had been New York’s strongest attacker of the rim, shooting 53% on drives for a team ranked 27th in field goal percentage at 43.4%, according to ESPN Stats & Information research.
New York fell to 25-35 with Friday’s 115-100 loss to the Heat. They’re in 12th place in the East, 3.5 games behind the Atlanta Hawks for the 10th and the final play-in spot in the conference.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.