Knicks' Tim Hardaway Jr. out with lower leg injury

New York Knicks starting shooting guard Tim Hardaway Jr. will be out for at least two weeks because of a stress injury in his lower left leg.

Hardaway has begun a treatment and rehabilitation plan to address the ailment, which has sidelined him for the previous two games.

The Knicks say Hardaway will be re-evaluated in two weeks. The team's medical staff has been evaluating Hardaway's injury since Sunday, when he was ruled out of the Knicks' game against Orlando shortly before tipoff.

Hardaway's absence is significant for a Knicks team that has lost five of its past six games. After a slow start, Hardaway. has become a consistent scorer and playmaker for New York, averaging 17.8 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game.

The specific nature of Hardaway Jr.'s injury is unclear. He has played through ankle and foot ailments over the course of the season. The pain in his lower leg - which head coach Jeff Hornacek specified as his shin - is a more recent development. If Hardaway Jr. has a stress reaction in his shin, he could be eligible to return in two weeks. If Hardaway Jr. has a stress fracture, he may be sidelined for several weeks following the re-evaluation.

Rookie Damyean Dotson had been starting in place of Hardaway the past two games.Other potential replacements for Hardaway Jr. in the starting lineup include Courtney Lee, the Knicks' starting small forward, or Ron Baker.

In other injury news, New York (11-12) hopes to get Kristaps Porzingis back for Wednesday's game against the Memphis Grizzlies. Porzingis has missed the past two games with a sprained right ankle. He is listed as questionable for the Memphis game.