Long before the start of the game against the Hawks Wednesday night, Damyean Dotson was on the Madison Square Garden floor working with the Knicks coaching staff, firing up shot after shot. For Dotson, it was more than the usual pregame sweat.
The 25-year-old shooting guard was expected to miss the entire preseason with Tuesday marking five months since he underwent surgery to repair a torn muscle in his right shoulder. That shut him down and he was left to watch as the remade Knicks roster worked together in scrimmages through the summer and then sorted out their rotations through the first two preseason games.