It doesn’t occur typically, however a wayward capturing Jalen Brunson was not on the ground for a large chunk of the fourth quarter of the Knicks’ comeback victory over the Spurs on Christmas.
The All-Star level guard was subbed out with 7:16 remaining with the Knicks trailing by eight factors, and he didn’t examine again in for Miles McBride till there was 2:17 left on the clock.
The Knicks outscored San Antonio, 18-9, with Brunson on the bench to take a one-point lead earlier than closing out their fifth straight win.
He completed with 20 factors however shot simply 7-for-23 from the ground.
“It was just reading the game,” Tom Thibodeau defined afterward. “He was truly on the scorer’s desk, however the recreation saved going. We might have used a timeout, and truly we would have liked a timeout to advance the ball.
“But the game was going in a positive way. So we were waiting for the dead ball. It was going to be a quick rest for him just to give him a minute or two and then use a timeout to sandwich that to get the rest he needed. And he’s usually good with that. He’ll tell me, ‘I’m ready.’ And when he’s ready, I’m ready.”
Mikal Bridges led the Knicks with 41 factors, and Josh Hart mentioned afterward that latest video games have proven that “we don’t need JB to go out there and score 30 for us to win.”
“For him, he doesn’t care,” Hart added. “His main agenda is to win and he’s happy with that.”
After Friday’s recreation in Orlando, the Knicks will shut out 2024 with consecutive video games Saturday and Monday in Washington towards the league-worst Wizards.
That twinbill and a house recreation towards the Jazz to begin the brand new 12 months will conclude a stretch of 5 out of seven towards lottery-bound groups.
The Knicks additionally posted victories earlier than Christmas towards the Jazz and the Pelicans.
“They’re NBA teams, the best of the best. I mean, any night, that’s what makes NBA basketball so special,” Karl-Anthony Cities mentioned. “These are the best of the best basketball players in the world. Any night you could lose. These teams all play with pride. … We had some dogfights, and we had to be unified and utilize the lessons we learned all season, in training camp.”
“We find ourselves crossing the finish line, but never take any team in the NBA for granted.”
Mitchell Robinson (out, ankle) is the one participant on the damage report for the Knicks. Paolo Banchero (indirect), Franz Wagner (indirect), Moe Wagner (knee) and Gary Harris (hamstring) are out for the Magic.
