Before and after Tuesday’s game in Utah, guard Austin Rivers noted that the Knicks were “tired” and indicated that he was not only physical, but also mental.
Rivers, the most outspoken Knick, initially blamed a grueling road schedule. The Knicks were on the road during a pandemic for 13 of their first 19 games, a stretch that ended Tuesday’s 108-94 collapse against the Jazz.
After the Knicks got wrapped up in the fourth quarter by an embarrassing 28-13 count, Rivers said he didn’t know what the reason was, but showed he gained a 15-point lead and didn’t fight in the final quarter.
“I mean, the boys were dead,” Rivers said. “I do not know what the reason was. But just looking around when it was six minutes to four, it didn’t seem like we were ourselves as a unit. Only our energy changed the second half. They became more physical. They brought us the fight. It just seemed to crash right there. ”
It was a condemnatory charge for a grain-based team, not offensive talent. Rivers, who scored 25 points in the first half and towards the second half, did not blame the distribution of minutes as the cause. Nor did it specify the demanding road safety protocols.
But Tom Thibodeau’s minutes could become a problem if the Knicks 8-11, who have lost three in a row, don’t reverse course when they return to Garden Friday against Cleveland after the eight-day four-game western swing.
Thibodeau is revered around the league for his technical insight, but his approach to winning at all costs has won detractors. A short rotation and the inability to give up blows and use their depth is evident in the first 19 games.
Julius Randle (36.7) and RJ Barrett (36.4), his two main gears, now rank second and fourth, respectively, in minutes per game in the NBA. During the outbreak of the fourth quarter on Tuesday, Thibodeau kept Barrett on track until they were 1:19, down 17. Barrett ended up recording 40:22.
It could have been a time to take action on the 2017 lottery selection, Frank Ntilikina. Ntilikina, now healthy, did not play the second game in a row after being away from home for 3 and a half weeks with a sprained knee.
Thibodeau does not throw in the towel easily. Against the Nets on January 13, Brooklyn won by a landslide. It seemed like an obvious opportunity to rest Randle and give rookie Obi Toppin, in his first game after a calf injury, a chance to get in shape.
Thibodeau kept Randle in the game and the Knicks returned fever. But the Knicks would have needed a miracle to pull off the win. They ended up losing, 116-109, and won some congratulations on national television for the return attempt. In fact, there was short-term success, but it raised questions about whether it was better in the long run.
Before Tuesday’s game, Rivers said of the first 19 contests, “I don’t know how a schedule could be tougher than what we played. Physically and mentally.”
Thibodeau, 63, an old-school Englishman whom Bill Belichick adores, doesn’t want to hear anything about a hard schedule or fatigue. And now things should be easier with 11 of the next 16 in the Garden.
“The calendar is the calendar,” Thibodeau said of Rivers ’statements. “It simply came to our notice then. Sometimes it’s in your favor. What makes this a little more unusual with COVID stuff is that you could be part of teams outside of an extended period of time. [like in Portland]. But all this is part of it. You could probably find an excuse for every game. This is what you need to protect yourself from. You have to have the mental toughness to overcome anything you are facing. “