Late last night, New York Knicks second-year forward Cleanthony Early was shot in the knee while leaving a strip club in Queens, New York.
At approximately 4:15 AM Wednesday morning, New York Knicks forward Cleanthony Early was shot in the knee and robbed by an armed crew while leaving a strip club in Queens, stealing his jewelry and gold caps off his teeth, according to the New York Daily News.
The attackers reportedly rode in three cars and boxed in Early’s Uber ride, with about six men taking anything of worth on Cle at the time before driving away.
Cleanthony was with his girlfriend at the time of the attack.
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No arrests have been made at this time and the injuries do not appear to be life threatening, however the bullet did wound the same knee that Early had surgically repaired last season.
It’s been a frustrating season for Cleanthony, playing in only 10 games thus far after being considered to be the steal of the 2014 NBA Draft by many. Early played only 30 seconds in the Knicks victory over the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday night, potentially his last playing time this season.
As someone that likes to rip on Early, I’d personally like to say that this news really bummed me out. Cle went to the same High School, Pine Bush, that I attended and while I never necessarily believed the hype around Early coming out Wichita State, I did believe he could be a solid NBA player. Hopefully this injury didn’t do anything structurally to Cle’s knee and we’ll be able to see him playing again soon, as Knicks coach Derek Fisher has said it’s only a matter of time before Early works his way into the rotation.