DALLAS — During the first half of the Knicks' 128-124 loss to the Mavericks on Thursday, a frustrated Jalen Brunson complained to the officials in the second quarter and was given a technical foul that affected his play. I admitted that. night.
“Yeah, it's tough. I can't get into the mindset of getting frustrated with things,” said Brunson, who finished with 30 points but made just 4 of 12 shots in the first half. “I have to get better. And I have to be ready from the beginning of the game, and that's my responsibility.”
After understanding the technical issue, Brunson claimed on court that his words were directed at coach Tom Thibodeau, not referee Daniel Scott. He refused to explain his regrets for the game, fearing a fine from the league.
“I love keeping money,” he said. “So I’m going to keep the money.”
The Knicks were whistled for 25 fouls compared to Dallas' 19, but only took two fewer foul shots. In the first half, the gap widened further.
“Hey, look sometimes – and I understand, I don't really care if the game is called tight or loose. I just want consistency,” Thibodeau said. “So there was some frustration, but that's all part of it. We have to deal with it.”
OG Anunoby was preparing to guard Luka Doncic. Doncic was sidelined with an ankle sprain the night before, so they replaced him with Kyrie Irving, who struggled to contain the seasoned point guard.
“I'm just trying to make him take the hardest shots possible,” Anunoby said. “And he makes those shots all the time. The key is not to get discouraged.”
Irving finished with 44 points, despite doing as good a job as he could while allowing so many points while being chased by the bigger and stronger Anunoby.
“We know the system very well. I knew how they were going to protect me tonight,” Irving said. “But I met with OG for most of the game and he forced me to make some tough decisions late on. It was definitely a different team than the Knicks I played last year.”
With Mitchell Robinson likely to return to an increasingly solid defense, his teammate and sidekick Isaiah Hartenstein could play non-stop at a “high level” in the midfield. I'm excited.
“It could be something really great,” Hartenstein said. “Even in the second half of last season, I feel like me and Mitch were 50-50 in playing time. So when he comes back, he’ll be able to play high-level center for 48 minutes. I'm excited to have him back. I think it's something that will take our team to another level.”
Robinson had been sidelined since December 12th after undergoing surgery on his fractured left ankle. Optimism that Robinson will be back by the end of the regular season is growing after Wednesday's news that the league denied the Knicks' disabled player exception request for Robinson.
The Knicks filed for a DPE despite knowing Robinson was likely to return, and a review of the league's medical situation emphasized that it should not be a season-ending procedure.
About three years ago, Robinson underwent surgery on a broken right foot, but the recovery took longer than expected. After his latest surgery, Robinson took to social media to express his disappointment. He said this week, “This past week has been hell with my mental health. So I'm going to take a break from social media for a while until I get back on my feet.”
“At the beginning of the surgery, you don't know what's going to happen,” Dr. Hartenstein said Thursday. “There could be setbacks. Sometimes it could be sooner. I mean, he was just — he wants to be back before the end of the season, but with an injury like that, setbacks can happen.” I don't know if there will be, if it will work out better than expected. I mean, that's kind of where he was. [when the injury first happened].I think it's him [potentially coming back] That's good for him and something he can strive for. So I'm excited for him. I think that will make him more optimistic about the whole situation.”
Rapidly rising Julius Randle has been named to the top list of All-Star voting.
The power forward, who was nowhere to be found in the initial top 10 results of last week's poll, currently ranks eighth among frontcourt players in the Eastern Conference, ahead of Brooklyn's Mikal Bridges, Orlando's Paolo Banchero, He is ahead of Washington's Kyle Kuzma.
Brunson remains sixth among Eastern Conference guards, but has received more than twice as many votes (759,640) as Randle (361,202).
Both Knicks are legitimate All-Star candidates, but Randle is unlikely to be a starter in the East alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo, Joel Embiid and Jayson Tatum.
First, fan voting will account for 50 percent, with players and media splitting the remaining 50 percent. Coach selects reserves.
