According to Gina Mizell of the Denver Post, Denver Nuggets’ Gary Harris has been diagnosed with a right knee strain/sprain and will be questionable for Saturday’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies.
This of course comes on the heels of Coach Michael Malone stating during last night’s post game press conference that initial X-rays were negative. Harris also posted on instagram this morning that seemed to indicate he was in a good mood, though anything beyond that would be speculation. Still, we all were thinking what Nick Kosmider, also of the Denver Post, tweeted out.
Nothing is certain as of yet. A sprain/strain is an ambiguous term so the severity of Gary’s injury, or how long he’ll be out, is still relatively unknown. However, the fact that he is listed as questionable for Saturday’s game is a positive. Had there been serious structural damage it’s highly unlikely that Harris would have been given the questionable tag. Obviously he’s going through some pain and the team will monitor closely how he recovers from the injury. Playoff race or not, the Nuggets won’t risk further injury to one of their best players by putting him back out onto the court too early.
One has to imagine it will be tough to contain Gary’s enthusiasm and drive to get back on the court though. With the Nuggets currently just a game back of the 8th seeded San Antonio Spurs and the 7th seeded Utah Jazz and still within striking distance of a seed as high as even #3, and with just 13 games remaining on the schedule, losing Harris, even if its just for a game or two, couldn’t come at a worse time. Denver could lean on Will Barton to replace Harris’ production in the starting lineup if he misses time, and Malik Beasley should also see a bump in minutes off the bench. Time will tell if the Nuggets have the mental toughness and depth to overcome a potential Harris absence.
