UPDATE: Joe Johnson’s sore heel is actually plantar fasciitis, as confirmed by Nets General Manager Billy King:
Joe Johnson’s injury is plantar fasciitis, according to Billy King.
— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) February 22, 2013
In an interview on Ryan Ruocco and Stephen A. Smith’s radio show on 98.7 FM ESPN, Billy King revealed that Joe Johnson would be out of tonight’s game with a sore heel.
Billy King mentioned Johnson’s not playing in passing, while answering a question from the show’s Twitter followers about Marshon’s playing time. Ryan Ruocco picked up on it, “I just heard you say Joe Johnson’s not playing tonight?”
King responded that he was out with a “sore heel, like the Plantar Fasciitis,” stating that the heel started hurting in the second game of the back-to-back with the Bucks. Ruocco followed up, asking if the injury could keep the six-time All-Star out for any extended length of time.
Billy King said no, stating that the injury was “day-to-day.” He went on to say that Johnson feels better than he did two days ago, but the Nets might keep JJ out on Sunday against the Grizzlies if there is still tenderness, because the season is a “marathon, not a sprint.”
When Ruocco asked if they were going with an official diagnosis of “Plantar Fasciitis,” BK said “I think I said sore heel” and asked if Ruocco followed Nets PR on Twitter. Ruocco said that he “absolutely” follows @Nets_PR, but pointed out they hadn’t tweeted anything about it yet.
King ended the discussion re-iterating that he does not expect this to be a long-term problem, saying that Joe Johnson would have probably played tonight if it were a playoff game.
