Knicks’ Stoudemire has surgery on hand

Associated Press

NEW YORK

Amare Stoudemire had a small muscle repaired Tuesday and will not play for the New York Knicks in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series against the Miami Heat.

The Knicks announced that Stoudemire met with a hand specialist at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, a day after he cut his left hand when he punched the case surrounding a fire extinguisher after the Knicks’ 104-94 loss in Miami.

The Knicks are listing Stoudemire as doubtful for Game 4 on Sunday.

Stoudemire apologized on his Twitter account for the act, which leaves the Knicks without another key player as they try to rally from a 2-0 deficit. Jeremy Lin is still recovering from knee surgery and Iman Shumpert is out for the season after tearing a knee ligament in Game 1.

The Knicks played well without him down the stretch by moving Carmelo Anthony to power forward, where he could take advantage of slower opponents. But asking him to carry so much of the offense on his own is probably too much to ask against the Heat, who are 5-0 against the Knicks this season.