[Quality88]

LEXINGTON, Ky. – University of Kentucky basketball player Joe Crawford had arthroscopic knee surgery last week but is expected to be back on the court next month.

Crawford underwent a procedure last week to clean out some cartilage in his left knee, which had been giving him problems since last spring. He is expected to return to full-speed workouts in four weeks. UK opens practice on Oct. 12.

Crawford, a Detroit native, is UK’s leading returning scorer after averaging 14 points as a junior. He has started 54 games over the last two seasons, including 32 last year.

Crawford is the third Wildcat this offseason to undergo a surgical procedure. Junior Jared Carter required surgery in early June after reinjuring his right shoulder, and sophomore Derrick Jasper underwent an arthroscopic procedure on his left knee in June.

All three have been limited in their conditioning work, but are expected to return to full-speed drills sometime next month.

“It’s disappointing to me and frustrating for Joe, Derrick and Jared to not be on the court at this point of the year,” UK coach Billy Gillispie said in a statement. “All three have worked hard to get in as good a shape as they can, but when you are injured, there is only so much you can do. They are missing out on valuable conditioning time, which is a major part of any team’s success. We’ll try to make up for lost time when they get healthy, but it puts us at a major disadvantage going into the season.”

UK's Joe Crawford has arthroscopic knee surgery

[Quality88]

Crawford is a must. I'm really leary with this annoucement. That's three of'em with issues that could possibly(but hopefully not) come back to haunt them. Jasper is a good player and I'm very anxious to see how he develops under the new coach. Crawford should be awesome.