Boston Celtics forward Danilo Gallinari suffered a left knee injury while playing for the Italian National Team. Gallinari’s left knee appeared to have buckled while he was driving to the basket in the fourth quarter of Italy’s 2023 FIBA World Cup Qualifier against Georgia.
Italy’s head coach Gianmarco Pozzecco said he feared Gallinari tore his left ACL but cautioned he didn’t know for sure.
“I hope and I pray that nothing bad will come out. It was… it is an honor coaching him. I saw pain in his eyes”, Pozzecco said.
Italy’s team doctor said a preliminary exam said that Gallinari’s left ACL, which he’s already had surgically repaired, appears to be intact. Gallinari is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Sunday to determine the extent of the injury.
Shams Charania of The Athletic also reported that Gallinari may avoided retearing his ACL:
Initial exams on Celtics forward Danilo Gallinari’s left knee show that the ACL is stable, full tests to come with an MRI on Sunday, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Good early news.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 27, 2022
Boston signed Gallinari to a two-year, $13.3 million contract in July. The Celtics used their full Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception to sign the veteran forward. The second season, in 2023-24, is a player option.
At his introductory press conference in Boston, Gallinari said that playing for the Celtics was a dream for him. He said that he and his father would watch Celtics games in Italy and often talked about him someday signing with Boston.
Stay tuned to CelticsBlog for more information on Gallinari’s injury as it develops.
