Childress to undergo surgery next week

Senior forward Ryan Childress will undergo surgery early next week to repair an injury to his right knee, the University of Tennessee confirmed Thursday.

Childress dislocated his right kneecap during a pickup game, the News Sentinel reported Wednesday, and could miss as much as three months of workouts.

UT’s statement did not predict when Childress could participate in offseason workouts.

The injury is a setback for the 6-foot-9 forward who hoped to regain his sophomore form following a disappointing 2007-08 season.

Childress averaged 2.3 points and 2.4 rebounds as a junior in UT’s SEC regular-season championship season. He did not score in the Vols’ final 20 games and played in only seven of the final 16.

The previous season Childress was one of the most improved players on the squad. He averaged 5.6 points, 4.0 rebounds and 15.7 minutes, playing in all 35 games.

He averaged 8.7 points and 5.0 rebounds in three 2007 NCAA tournament games in which he was 6-of-8 from 3-point range.

However, as a junior Childress was only 3-of-17 from 3-point range. He scored 14 points in an early-season game but slid out of the rotation the final two months of the season as freshman Brian Williams improved and sophomore Duke Crews returned from a medical hiatus.

Childress’ projected role in 2008-09 is in flux with the arrival of freshman Philip Jurick and Renaldo Woolridge.

Still, Childress is the only senior on the team and ranks sixth in minutes played among the returnees. When Crews was dismissed from the team by coach Bruce Pearl, the opportunity to gain minutes improved.

UT is still recruiting another power forward. Emmanuel Negedu visited earlier this week and could make an announcement after finishing visits to Memphis and Georgia Tech.

© 2008, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
Want to use this article? Click here for options!