Hornets’ star Chris Paul needs arthroscopic surgery for a cartilage tear in his left knee reports Yahoo! Sports. He’ll be out 1-2 months, although the injury isn’t expected to end his season.
Paul injured the knee in the final moments of regulation in a loss to the Chicago Bulls on Friday. Paul was injured after he fell into a photographer on the baseline after trying to catch an errant inbounds pass from Hornets forward David West. Paul came up limping after the play, which led to the Bulls tying the game with .2 seconds left.
Paul also told reporters he had initially twisted the same knee in a win over the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday.
Test results revealed a partial tear to Paul’s meniscus. There is still some doubt as to the extent of the injury, one source said, but it is not believed to be season-ending.
The Hornets will now rely on rookie point guard Darren Collison in Paul’s absence. Collison has already made nine starts in place of Paul (who also missed time with an ankle injury earlier this year) this season, averaging 15.1 points per game, 7.7 assists, 3.4 rebounds and 1.0 steals.
