With a postseason spot clinched — simply the second time in 10 years for the Knicks — coach Tom Thibodeau mentioned he gained’t contemplate resting his gamers till they’re locked right into a seed.
“For us, we’re in but there’s still some things at stake,” the coach mentioned. “If someone’s nicked up, they’re not going to play. But we need to keep playing. We want to be playing our best going in. We’re young, we still have a lot of improvement. But we’re not there yet. So if everything is locked up, maybe we would consider that. But there’s things that are still to be done.”
The Knicks (46-33), winners of 4 straight, can safe not less than the fifth seed with a Nets loss Tuesday towards the Timberwolves and a victory Wednesday at Indiana.
Since Julius Randle is already dominated out for the rest of the season, the apparent participant to relaxation is Jalen Brunson, who has lately missed video games with a sore foot and sprained hand.
Brunson, who’s taking part in with a brace on his proper hand, is averaging profession highs in minutes and utilization. He’s additionally a candidate for Most Improved Player and All-NBA recognition.
“I want a chance to compete,” Brunson mentioned. “Whenever you get a chance to do that, I think that’s the most important thing you want to do. I’m not really going to play for individual accolades. If you win, those things can come. But if you don’t win, it’s meaningless. For us, we have to continue to win as many games as possible. All the other stuff is going to fall into place, but I’m just here to win.”
Josh Hart, who twisted his ankle in Sunday’s victory over the Wizards (however obtained taped up and continued taking part in), is now the oldest participant within the rotation at 28. He didn’t appear desirous to relaxation.
It’s additionally price noting that the Knicks may have not less than six days off from the top of the common season to the playoffs.
“If I can play, I can play,” Hart mentioned. “Obviously other people have different thoughts. But as a competitor I want to play every game. I hate sitting out. So sometimes it’s not your decision. I’m not sure what philosophy we gave. But we have to go into the postseason strong, physically and as a team. I want to compete every game. We’ll see.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com