Knicks Notes: Randle, Barrett, Resting Players, Postseason, Brunson
The Knicks have found tactical methods to survive without the services of shelved starting forwards Julius Randle and RJ Barrett, writes Petter Botte of The New York Post. Randle is done for the rest of the regular season with a left ankle sprain, while Barrett is dealing with a non-COVID illness.
In their most recent game Sunday night, the Knicks were able to beat the Wizards at home sans Randle or Barrett, 118-109, with a balanced offensive attack that featured four 20-point scorers.
“The ball was moving. We were just out there, just having fun, moving the ball and just playing freely,” Randle substitute Obi Toppin said. “It feels good, but I just got to come back here and do what I gotta do every single day to help the team win.”
There’s more out of Madison Square Garden:
- The win against Washington officially allowed New York to clinch its second playoff berth in three seasons under head coach Tom Thibodeau, writes Tim Bontemps of ESPN. “It’s a great accomplishment, because it’s one of the goals,” Thibodeau said. He also mentioned that he would not consider resting his top players until New York was officially locked into a seed in the East, per Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News (Twitter link). “There’s still some things at stake,” Thibodeau noted. At 46-33, the Knicks are currently three games behind the fourth-seeded Cavaliers and 2.5 games ahead of the sixth-seeded Nets, so they’ll likely finish at No. 5.
- Bontemps adds that players are looking beyond just making the playoffs this year. “It’s a good accomplishment,” reserve wing Immanuel Quickley said. “But I think we want a bit more for ourselves.” As Bontemps writes, New York has only made it out of the first round once since 2000.
- Knicks starting point guard Jalen Brunson is making a convincing push to secure Most Improve Player honors this season, thanks to his major contribution to the club’s on-court performance and his role as a team leader during his first year in New York, Bondy writes in another piece. “It’s a unique award,” Brunson told Bondy. “It’s not something I’m really focused on 100 percent. I don’t really think about it but if it’s something I win or achieve, I’ll be very thankful. But it’s not on the forefront of my mind.” The team has already improved its win-loss record by nine games, and still has three left to play. Brunson is having by far his best season as a pro statistically, averaging 24.0 PPG, 6.2 APG, 3.5 RPG, and 0.9 SPG in his 68 healthy games.
New York Notes: Toppin, Barrett, Claxton, Bridges, Simmons
Obi Toppin, who started in place of injured Julius Randle on Friday, had a heated exchange with RJ Barrett during the Knicks’ win over the Cavaliers on Friday night. However, the Knicks downplayed the incident afterward, Peter Botte of the New York Post reports.
Head coach Tom Thibodeau and his assistants had to keep Toppin away from Barrett during a third-quarter timeout. Toppin and Barrett hugged on the court shortly afterward.
“We’re brothers. And we’re good. We discussed it,” Toppin said.
We have more on the New York teams:
- Nic Claxton signed a two-year, $17.25MM contract as a restricted free agent last summer. That contract is proving to be a bargain, Brian Lewis of the New York Post writes. Claxton has started 72 games and leads the Nets in blocks and rebounds. Claxton hopes he remains with the franchise beyond next season. “It’s human nature. It’s just in our business, you never really know what’s going to happen as far as trades, contracts and everything,” Claxton said. “But I’ve been here four years, and Brooklyn has been a huge [time], played a huge role in my growth. And I would love to be here.”
- Nets forward Mikal Bridges is on track to play 83 regular season games this season, something that hasn’t been done since Josh Smith played that many games for Houston and Detroit in 2014/15, Nick Friedell of ESPN notes. Nets GM Sean Marks is impressed by Bridges’ durability during a time when players are frequently rested. “You look at how he plays the game,” Marks said. “Obviously, when he was playing in Phoenix, even dating back to college days, the length, the reliability — he’s nearing 400 games played in a row, it’s pretty unique in this day and age. And for somebody who actually wants to play at that clip is also certainly refreshing.”
- With Ben Simmons declared out for the season by the Nets, Lewis interviewed a number of medical experts and Simmons’ agent to determine whether he’ll be healthier next season (New York Post subscription required). Lewis also explored the question of whether Simmons might require surgery to resolve his back and knee issues.
Julius Randle To Miss At Least Two Weeks With Ankle Sprain
Knicks All-Star power forward Julius Randle will miss at least the next two weeks due to a left ankle sprain, the team has announced (Twitter link).
According to the Knicks, Randle will have the ankle reassessed in two weeks. That doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be ready to hit the floor at that juncture, just that New York could have a better sense of his recovery timeline.
Randle injured the ankle during the second quarter of an eventual 101-92 victory over the Heat Wednesday.
Needless to say, this serves as an incredibly inopportune time for New York to be without perhaps its best player. That will knock him out for the team’s final five games of the 2022/23 regular season. The NBA playoffs will begin two weeks from Saturday, on April 15.
At 44-33, New York is currently the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference. Tim Bontemps of ESPN observes that the Knicks are just two wins away from clinching their second postseason appearance in three seasons under head coach Tom Thibodeau. As Ian Begley of SNY.tv tweets, New York is 2.5 games ahead of the No. 6-seeded Nets, and four games in front of the seventh-seeded Heat, so the club is a good bet to avoid the play-in.
Prior to the ankle injury, Randle had not missed a single game this season. In his 77 appearances, the 6’8″ forward averaged 25.1 PPG on .459/.343/.757 shooting splits. He also chipped in 10.0 RPG, 4.1 APG and 0.6 SPG. Randle seems to stand a pretty good chance of landing on his second All-NBA team in three seasons thanks to his consistency, health and team record.
As the East’s fifth seed, the Knicks are currently slated to square off against Cleveland in the first round of the playoffs. New York will face the Cavs, who have already clinched a playoff berth, on Friday.
Injury Updates: Randle, Clippers, Sixers, Wolves, Blazers
The Knicks received both good and bad news on Wednesday night versus Miami. The good news is point guard Jalen Brunson was able to play after missing the past two games with a sprained right hand, and the Knicks came away with an important victory (Twitter link via the team).
The bad news is power forward Julius Randle sprained his left ankle after landing on Bam Adebayo‘s foot following an offensive rebound (YouTube link), with Randle remaining on the floor for a while in pain. He stayed in the game to shoot free throws, but headed back to the locker room with a trainer.
Randle was able to limp off the floor on his own, but as soon as he was back in the team’s tunnel he was bent over in discomfort. The Knicks later ruled him out for the remainder of the contest (via Twitter).
Hopefully the injury isn’t severe, particularly so late in the season. Randle has appeared in all 77 games for the Knicks and was named to his second All-Star team last month.
Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:
- Clippers star Kawhi Leonard was ruled out of Wednesday’s game in Memphis due to personal reasons, per Law Murray of The Athletic (Twitter links). Head coach Tyronn Lue said the team is hopeful Leonard will only be out one game. On a positive note, Norman Powell was able to return to action after missing the past 11 games with a shoulder injury — he was previously listed as questionable.
- Sixers stars Joel Embiid (calf soreness) and James Harden (Achilles soreness) were active for Wednesday’s game vs. Dallas, tweets Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN was the first to report the news (via Twitter). Embiid missed Monday’s loss in Denver with the injury, while Harden had missed four straight games.
- The Timberwolves had several late additions to their injury report (Twitter link) ahead of tonight’s game in Phoenix. Kyle Anderson, Anthony Edwards, Taurean Prince, Austin Rivers and Matt Ryan are all dealing with an illness that head coach Chris Finch described as an “intestinal flu,” according to Chis Hine of The Star Tribune (Twitter link). Edwards and Anderson were able to suit up, but the Wolves later ruled out (via Twitter) the other three players as well as Jaylen Nowell, who continues to battle left knee tendinopathy.
- In addition to four starters being held out with various injuries and surgeries sidelining a couple other players, the Trail Blazers added three young players to Wednesday’s injury report ahead of their matchup with Sacramento (Twitter link). Second-year guard Keon Johnson is out with a fractured right finger, while second-year big man Trendon Watford will miss his second straight game with a sprained right ankle. Fourth-year wing Cam Reddish is doubtful due to lumbar soreness.
New York Notes: Sharpe, Bridges, Randle, Jeffries
The Nets fortified their frontcourt depth this month by signing a pair of big men to 10-day contracts — Nerlens Noel got one, then the team brought in Moses Brown following the expiration of Noel’s deal. However, Noel wasn’t re-signed and Brown only played four minutes during his 10 days with Brooklyn, which concluded on Sunday night.
Rather than using Brown, the Nets have leaned recently on Day’Ron Sharpe as their backup center behind Nic Claxton, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Sharpe has responded admirably, averaging 10.8 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks in just 15.8 minutes per game over his last four appearances.
“Sometimes you have to tap into that competitive nature,” Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn said. “Sometimes you can not appreciate the situation that you’re in. It might not look like the way you want it to look on your timing. Sometimes you need a little nudge, and Day’Ron has responded extremely well by having another big on the roster.”
Following the expiration of Brown’s 10-day deal, the Nets have an open spot on their 15-man roster, so they’re in position to bring back Noel or Brown or to add someone new before the end of the regular season. Noel would be playoff-eligible but Brown wouldn’t be, since he has been waived since March 1.
Here’s more on the NBA’s two New York teams:
- After attempting 1.9 free throws per game during his four-and-a-half years in Phoenix, Nets forward Mikal Bridges is getting to the foul line 6.7 times per game in Brooklyn. He credited Suns stars Devin Booker and Chris Paul for helping him grow and expand that part of his game during his first few years in the NBA, Lewis writes for The New York Post. “Just trying to get to the line, just trying to be aggressive. That’s just a big thing,” Bridges said. “Coming from Phoenix, watching a lot of and being right there with a lot of Book and CP3 and how they draw fouls, I’ve learned a lot.”
- Prior to Monday’s blowout win over Houston, Knicks forward Julius Randle had received technical fouls in three consecutive games, all losses. While Randle acknowledged he needs to do a better job of keeping his frustration in check, he doesn’t believe his outbursts adversely impact his standing as a team leader, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. “Name a perfect leader,” Randle said. “Name a perfect human being.”
- The Knicks used a portion of their room exception when they signed DaQuan Jeffries to a two-year contract, Hoops Rumors has learned. A rest-of-season minimum salary for Jeffries would have paid him $163,977, but New York opted to give him $300K for the remainder of the season using the room exception. The swingman’s new deal includes a non-guaranteed minimum salary ($2.07MM) for 2023/24.
Knicks Notes: Trade Chips, Brunson, Randle, Quickley
Given their excess of future first-round picks, the Knicks have long been viewed as a good candidate to make a trade for a star player — they seemingly got close last summer when they pursued Donovan Mitchell. In a recent Hoop Collective podcast, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst suggested that the team could be even more ambitious heading into the 2023 offseason.
“Here’s what I think about the Knicks,” Windhorst said (hat tip to RealGM). “They have two handfuls of trade material, in my opinion. They can make, in my opinion, two big trades if they had to coming into this summer. They have the expiring contract of Evan Fournier, which can act as ballast in a trade. They have a bunch of younger players that people are interested in. And they have something like nine tradable first round picks.
“In my view, they can trade for two star-level players if they needed to. … In my opinion, they can hold Jalen Brunson, they can hold Julius Randle, and they can make two giant trades. Now, whether they can hold Brunson, Randle AND (RJ) Barrett and make two giant trades, that would depend on the players. But there is even a window that they can hold all three of those and make two giant trades.”
Windhorst went on to offer some caveats. He believes that a star (or two) may have to explicitly seek a move to New York in order for the Knicks to realistically be able to use their assets to land two impact players. He also acknowledged that, as well positioned as the Knicks are to pursue a blockbuster deal or two, actually making those deals won’t be easy.
“Leon Rose has put them in position,” Windhorst said. “Getting into position is not the hard part. Executing is the hard part. But he’s put them in position.”
Here’s more on the Knicks:
- Three games after returning from a foot injury, Jalen Brunson was out again on Thursday in Orlando due to a right hand sprain, notes Peter Botte of The New York Post. Following the Knicks’ loss to the Magic, Brunson appeared to be sporting a hard plastic brace on his hand. “I think he’ll be evaluated when we get back (to New York), so we’ll see where he is,” head coach Tom Thibodeau said.
- An All-NBA second-teamer in 2021, Julius Randle had a down year in 2022 but now once again looks like a legitimate All-NBA candidate, writes Fred Katz of The Athletic. Katz polled 39 media members on their All-NBA picks and found that Randle received the fourth-most votes among forwards, behind only Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayson Tatum, and Jimmy Butler. As Katz observes, Randle could benefit from superstars like Kevin Durant, LeBron James, and Kawhi Leonard missing significant time due to injuries.
- Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports spoke to Sixth Man of the Year candidate Immanuel Quickley about the strides he has made on both sides of the court during his third NBA season. Quickley will be eligible for a rookie scale extension beginning in July.
- Randle received a technical foul for yelling at official Leon Wood at the end of the first half of Thursday’s loss. Quickley, who tried to calm down Randle, ended up nose-to-nose with his teammate as the two exchanged words (Twitter video link), but downplayed the altercation after the game, Botte writes for The New York Post. “Honestly, everybody’s trying to win. Heat of the moment. That’s basically what it is,” Quickley said. “We all want to win. We’re all trying to get dubs.”
Knicks Notes: Hart, Brunson, Hartenstein, Randle
Josh Hart is hoping he’s not just a rental with the Knicks, as he told Marc J. Spears of Andscape.
Hart, who plans to decline his $12.96MM option for next season, said he wants to sign a long-term deal and remain in New York. Family reasons are a major reason why he feels that way, since he and his wife Shannon are more comfortable on the East Coast than they were in the Pacific Northwest when he played for Portland.
“I want bigger things for my wife and myself,” said Hart, who grew up in Maryland. “Just find a home somewhere where we are valued and really like living there. And I think that can be New York. I would love for it to be New York and hopefully the organization feels the same way. Coming up, this contract is hopefully my biggest one, one where I’m making sure my family’s fully taken care of. So, I’ve also got to take that into account, too.”
We have more on the Knicks:
- Speaking of Hart, he’s thrilled to be reunited with his former college teammate Jalen Brunson. He’s greatly impressed by how Brunson has made himself into an All-Star caliber player, he told Ethan Sears of the New York Post. “It’s really dope for me to see, obviously, knowing him since 2013, watching his progression, watching him grow just as a friend,” Hart said. “It’s amazing cause I’ve seen the work behind the scenes. And he knows this, and I have the most respect for him as almost any NBA guy or basketball player in general because he continues to grind, continues to work.”
- Isaiah Hartenstein signed a two-year contract to join the club as a free agent and he’s getting steady minutes. His impact goes beyond the numbers on the stat sheet, Sears notes. “Whether he scores 10 points, 15 points, he rebounds, he defends, gets his hands on plays and deflections and stuff like that,” Julius Randle said. “Sets screens, really good screens. He just does a lot of little things for us that help us win.” Hartenstein is averaging 4.8 points and 6.7 rebounds in 19.6 minutes per night.
- Coach Tom Thibodeau lamented that the team couldn’t take advantage of Randle’s career night on Monday, Fred Katz of The Athletic writes. He poured in 57 points, the most by a Knicks player since Carmelo Anthony scored 62 points in January 2014, but the Knicks’ defense went AWOL in a 140-134 loss to Minnesota. “It’s a shame to waste a performance like that,” Thibodeau said. “You couldn’t ask for anything more.”
Devin Booker, Julius Randle Named Players Of The Week
Suns guard Devin Booker and Knicks forward Julius Randle have been named the NBA’s players of the week, the league announced (via Twitter).
Phoenix went 3-0 last week, with Booker averaging 36.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, 7.7 assists and 1.0 block on .560/.500/.778 shooting in the three victories. The three-time All-Star won for the Western Conference.
Randle, the East’s winner, averaged 29.5 points, 8.3 rebounds and 4.8 assists on .526/.465/.727 shooting last week. New York went 4-0 to extend its winning streak to nine games.
It was the first time either player has won the award this season.
According to the NBA (Twitter link), the other nominees in the West were Anthony Davis, Jamal Murray, Domantas Sabonis and Jalen Williams, while Giannis Antetokounmpo, James Harden, Tyrese Maxey and Immanuel Quickley were nominated in the East.
Knicks Notes: Quickley, Randle, Hart, Brunson
Knicks guard Immanuel Quickley is quickly developing into a top-notch sixth man in the mold of Lou Williams, according to Zach Braziller of the New York Post.
Quickley, who is extension-eligible this offseason, is averaging 13.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.1 assists in his third season.
“Any time you get mentioned with any great players like Lou Williams, anybody that’s won Sixth Man of the Year, it’s definitely something that’s pretty cool,” Quickley said.
We have more on the Knicks:
- Julius Randle says he’s not comfortable with load management, Stefan Bondy of the New York Dailly News tweets. “I just put way too much into my body to cheat myself out of being available for my team,” Randle said. He’s the only Knicks player to appear in every game this season.
- The Knicks are in a better position to acquire a star player than last offseason when they failed to land Donovan Mitchell, Braziller writes in a separate subscriber-only story. They have some extra draft picks and solid young players to dangle in a blockbuster deal. Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Davis could be possibilities, depending upon how this season plays out, Braziller speculates.
- Among the attributes Josh Hart has brought since being acquired from Portland is his ability to score in transition and his superior rebounding for a wing, Ethan Fuller of Basketball News notes.
- Jalen Brunson missed Sunday’s game at Boston due to a sore foot, the team’s PR department tweets. Coach Tom Thibodeau wasn’t sure if Brunson received an MRI but added “I don’t think it’s serious,” Braziller tweets.
Knicks Notes: Robinson, Randle, Barrett, Dolan
Mitchell Robinson didn’t need any time to adjust to being back on the court as he returned to the Knicks‘ lineup Friday night, writes Peter Botte of The New York Post. In his first game since undergoing thumb surgery in January, Robinson had 10 points, 12 rebounds and posted a plus-12 rating in 28 minutes as New York rallied to beat the Wizards.
Now in sixth place at 34-27, the Knicks have been able to rise up the Eastern Conference standings without Robinson, who anchors the team on defense. His return gives New York a complete lineup as it tries to avoid the play-in tournament and possibly capture home court in the first round of the playoffs.
“Still have work that needs to be done, so I’m gonna take it day by day,” Robinson said. “Still trying to get better at stuff I’m normally already used to doing. So just gotta lock in and get better at it. We only got 22 games left (now 21) in 40-something days. So we’re gonna make the best of it and get it right.”
There’s more on the Knicks:
- Julius Randle played in the All-Star Game, but he looked much fresher on Friday than his more rested teammates, notes Steve Popper of Newsday. Randle scored 46 points and sparked a rally that led to the Knicks overcoming a 19-point deficit. “Just came out aggressive,” he said. “That time of the year. Just gotta lock in. Just lost in the game, man, so whatever the team needs, that’s what I’m gonna do.”
- RJ Barrett played just 28 minutes against Washington and remained on the bench late in the game as coach Tom Thibodeau used Immanuel Quickley and Josh Hart to get better defense on the wing, per Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. “A lot of it is flow of the game,” Thibodeau explained. “Like I said, I love our depth. We have a number of guys that are coming off the bench that are starters. There’s no dropoff. So whoever is going good, whatever the best matchup is, that’s what we’re going to go with. … So we need everyone. We’re asking guys to sacrifice. Some guys would like to start and they’re not starting. And some guys would like more shots and more minutes. That’s common. But everyone has to put the team first.”
- Knicks owner James Dolan skipped a New York City Council hearing Friday on facial recognition technology, which he allegedly uses to keep his enemies from entering Madison Square Garden, according to Chris Sommerfeldt of The New York Daily News.