NBA Playoffs 2015: Hawks DeMarre Carroll’s Knee has no Structural Damage

By Cheri Cheng - 21 May '15 16:01PM

Atlanta Hawks DeMarre Carroll did not sustain any structural damage in his left knee when he was injured during Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Hawks announced that Carroll has a sprained left knee and is questionable for game 2.

Carroll, who guards LeBron James, injured his knee during the fourth quarter in Wednesday's game. Carroll was on a fast break and landed awkwardly after jumping to attempt a layup He was being guarded by Iman Shumpert, who did not contact him during the play.

"It was hard to watch," teammate Kyle Korver said in his postgame interview. "We love DeMarre like a brother. ... We'll see [Thursday] how he is. Obviously, it didn't look good."

Cavaliers James added, "At the end of the day, we're all a brotherhood. NBA is a brotherhood, and you never want anyone to get injured, even in combat. So that's what went through my mind. Obviously, I love competing versus anybody who loves to compete as well. He's one of those guys that was competing throughout the night, throughout the postseason. I'm not sure the severity of the injury right now. But I hope he has a recovery, whatever it is. You just don't want anybody to get hurt like that."

Carroll had to be helped onto his feet and into the locker room because he could not put any pressure on his leg. Carroll finished the night with five points, one rebound and two steals in 35 minutes of play. The Cavaliers ended up winning 97-89.

"He's such a great teammate. Everybody's just concerned for DeMarre, and I'm hoping that he's healthy and ready to help us as soon as possible," Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said. "That's how we feel about each of our teammates, each of our players. I know there's that same feeling for DeMarre, and it's the playoffs. So everybody would like him to come through this as healthy as possible."

During the Hawks - Brooklyn Nets series, Nets coach Lionel Hollins credited the Hawks' victory to Carroll. Hollins called Carroll the series MVP. In the playoffs so far, Carroll, who will become a free agent in July averaged 16.2 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists.

Game 2 of the Hawks - Cavs series will be on Friday, May 22 at 8:30 p.m. ET on TNT.