Knicks Notes: Thibodeau, Brunson, Hukporti, Rotation

Requested forward of the Knicks‘ first-round series about speculation that head coach Tom Thibodeau will be on the hot seat if New York doesn’t make a deep playoff run, star level guard Jalen Brunson referred to himself as a “big Thibs supporter” and strongly backed his coach, as Jared Schwartz of The New York Post writes.

“He means a lot,” Brunson stated on Friday (Twitter video link). “Individually, he’s meant loads to my profession. I’d say he’s meant an honest quantity to (Karl-Anthony Cities), teaching KAT in Minnesota and right here. There’s lots of gamers who can say they’ve positively benefited from Tom Thibodeau in his profession.

“But I think as a team, we’re always in a position where we can compete in the postseason since I’ve been here. He’s very prepared. He’s a very prepared individual. He’s done a lot for my career, so I’m always going to be a supporter. Always. Even when he annoys me. Always.”

Thibodeau has confronted criticism through the years due a notion that he overworks his prime gamers, and three Knicks ranked among the many prime six gamers within the NBA in minutes per sport this season. However New York will enter the 2025 postseason with practically all of its gamers – together with everybody who’s a part of the rotation – totally wholesome, as Stefan Bondy of The New York Post notes.

Right here’s extra on the Knicks:

• Rookie heart Ariel Hukporti, who has been out since February 26 whereas recovering from surgical procedure on his left meniscus, was upgraded to questionable for Recreation 1 of the Knicks’ first-round sequence vs. Detroit and practiced on Friday, tweets Bondy. In line with Ian Begley of SNY.television (Twitter link), Thibodeau referred to Hukporti as a game-time choice, although it appears unlikely that he’d be a part of the crew’s rotation even when he’s wholesome sufficient to play.
• In a separate story for The New York Post, Bondy weighs the case for and in opposition to increasing the Knicks’ playoff rotation past seven gamers. As Bondy outlines, Miles McBride and Mitchell Robinson are locks to see common minutes off the bench, but it surely’s unclear whether or not Landry Shamet, Valuable Achiuwa, or Cameron Payne will get off the bench. If Thibodeau does use an eighth man, Bondy believes Shamet is the most effective wager for that function.
• Even after the Knicks added Cities and Mikal Bridges as offensive weapons final offseason, Brunson nonetheless led the crew and ranked fifth within the Japanese Convention with 26.0 factors per sport. The Knicks will want him greater than ever with a view to make a playoff run this spring, says James L. Edwards III of The Athletic.