At the heart of this are the numbers in the minutes.
Mikal Bridges has the most points in the NBA this season. Josh Hart takes second place. 3rd place goes to OG Anunoby.
Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns also entered Thursday's game ranked No. 7 and No. 16, respectively.
But in the eyes of Towns and Hart, that doesn't mean Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau should be criticized for one of his most notable or, depending on how you look at it, infamous philosophies.
His usage strategy sparks debate every year. But after Wednesday's Knicks win, Thibodeau received a lot of support from his players, even as his minutes continued to increase.
Asked if Thibodeau faced similar criticism when he was coaching the Timberwolves, Towns said, “I feel like everyone's always criticizing him.” “No matter where he is. But… he continues to get jobs and that means everyone continues to respect him and know what he can do for the team. And He did it in Chicago. He did it with us at Minnie. And he did it here even before I got here. I am.
“So say what you want about Thisbus, but he gets the job done.”
All of the Knicks' starters except Brunson had a higher RBI average than either last year under Thibodeau or with their previous teams, although Brunson averaged 35.0, down slightly from 35.4 in 2023-24. It is showing an increase in minutes.
Bridges' average jumped from 34.8 with the Nets last year to 39.1 with the Knicks. Anunoby's number jumped from 34.0 to 36.5.
Even Towns is getting some more court time, with the star center who played under Thibodeau early in his career averaging 32.7 minutes per game in his first season with the Knicks, after logging 32.7 minutes per game last year. He recorded a time of 34.6 minutes.
If this trajectory continues into the second half of the season, it would be the most points per game Towns has scored since the 2017-18 season (35.6 points), Thibodeau's second year as Timberwolves coach.
The Knicks are already facing injury scares, with Towns set to miss Friday's rematch with the Thunder with a knee injury, Anunoby taking a hard fall against Oklahoma City and Hart briefly sidelined Wednesday. I have returned.
However, they have avoided long-term sidelines so far, with starting pitchers missing only five games in total.
Bridges and Anunoby started all 38 games.
“We've had some bad games, we've lost back-to-backs, and we've all been crying about the minutes and what the police did and all that stuff,” Hart said Wednesday. “It's all outside noise. We're going to play the game the way it's supposed to be played. When we get out there, we're going to play as hard as we can.”
Part of Thibodeau's use stems from the Knicks' lack of reliable depth.
Mitchell Robinson has not yet recovered from his injury. Landry Shamet dislocated his shoulder during the preseason and was waived, only returning after re-signing with the Knicks in December.
Miles McBride, the Knicks' top guard off the bench, has missed five straight games with a hamstring injury and is doubtful to play Friday.
Precious Achiuwa and Cameron Payne averaged 18.8 and 15.3 minutes per game off the bench, but Jericho Sims' cameo was fleeting.
Coach Thibodeau wants to rely on his starting pitchers. Perhaps that will never change. “We're going to be there,” Hart said — regardless of the criticism that followed.
