R.J. Barrett to be out at least a week with first major injury of career

R.J. Barrett, the former Duke basketball superstar and current New York Knicks rookie, will be out for at least one week after suffering an ankle injury last week.

Throughout his young career, R.J. Barrett has never been truly injured until now as he will be out for at least a week with an ankle sprain.

Barrett was injured on January 16 in a loss to the Phoenix Suns as the rookie was driving to the basket and took an awkward step on his right ankle.

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X-rays were taken after the game and the results came back negative, but the Knicks said its prized young star will be re-evaluated in a week.

R.J. Barrett was only able to play 14 minutes in the loss and scored seven points, grabbed three rebounds, and dished out two assists.

In his rookie season, Barrett has played, and started, in 41 games for the Knicks while averaging 14.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.0 steals per game. He is shooting 39.3 percent from the field and 32.9 percent from 3-point range.

Since the firing of head coach David Fizdale, the Knicks have shown improvement and progress, but New York is just 11-32 on the season and is only ahead of the Atlanta Hawks for last place in the Eastern Conference.

The Knicks have the third-worst record in the NBA, as the Golden State Warriors are just 10-34 in the Western Conference.

New York will travel to face a team that has just one more win than it does in the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday, January 20, with a 5:00pm EST tipoff.

Pending further evaluation and potential setbacks, it could be realistic for R.J. Barrett to return to the court on Sunday, January 26 when the Knicks face the Brooklyn Nets or on Tuesday, January 28 when New York travels to face the Charlotte Hornets.

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At the very least, fans will most likely not see Barrett on the floor before those dates.