Knicks Draft-and-Stash Guard Rokas Jokubaitis Faces Six-Month Layoff After Serious Knee Injury
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Lithuanian point guard Rokas Jokubaitis will sit out the remainder of EuroBasket and is expected to miss a substantial part of the 2025/26 campaign after suffering a severe left knee injury, Bayern Munich announced on Monday.
The EuroLeague club described the setback as a “severe ligament injury.” Jokubaitis is scheduled for surgery and is projected to be sidelined for at least six months. While Bayern did not specify the exact damage, BasketNews.com reporter Donatas Urbonas said the 24-year-old’s ACL and meniscus are involved.
“We have enjoyed watching Rokas so much at EuroBasket—he has been outstanding,” Bayern sports director Dragan Tarlac said in a statement. “With his spirit and fighting mentality, he will come back stronger. We’re waiting for him and will support him in every possible way so that he can return to the court next year.”
The injury occurred in the fourth quarter of Lithuania’s win over Finland when Jokubaitis drove to the basket and his left leg buckled awkwardly. He immediately left the game and received treatment on the bench.
Selected 34th overall in the 2021 NBA Draft, Jokubaitis was acquired by the New York Knicks in a draft-night trade that also brought Miles McBride to New York. He has yet to sign an NBA contract, spending the past several seasons in Europe—most recently with FC Barcelona and Maccabi Tel Aviv—before agreeing to a three-year deal with Bayern Munich last month. The Knicks retain his NBA rights.
Before the injury, Jokubaitis was one of EuroBasket’s top performers, averaging a team-best 17.3 points, 8.5 assists and 1.5 steals in just 24.2 minutes, while shooting 49.1 percent from the field and 55.6 percent from three-point range. Lithuania finished group play 3-1 to secure a berth in the round of 16.
Source: Hoops Rumors
