The knee is simply a joint between the hip/spine and the foot. Therefore, it is unsupported directly by the core, and not touching the ground in gait. It depends and relies on the core, hip, and foot/ankle for stability, alignment, and direction. All knee injury evaluations involve a visual and often video analysis of walking, running, jumping, squatting, daily living activities, and sport-specific demands as well a shoe assessment. Imbalances in muscle use (such as inner vs outer thigh, quads vs. hamstrings, inner vs. outer gluteal rotators, etc.) are evaluated to create perfect home programs for the patient. Think of the knee as the epicenter for a large pulley system, and PT as the method to tighten, tune, and align each pulley to operate safely and efficiently. This is why simply icing, stretching for 5 minutes, and rubbing cream on tendons will never provide long term relief.