RJ Barrett couldn’t wait to get back on track after his 2 of 15 brickfest Saturday against the Sixers at home opening.
It was the perfect moment for a back-to-back in Barrett’s eyes, even if it was against the Eastern Conference favorite, the Bucks.
Barrett put the Philadelphia fiasco in the rearview mirror and made a strong start appropriate to his performance in the preseason and at the start of the season. On Sunday, in the Knicks ’130-110 clash over Milwaukee, Barrett was again a batter, scoring 17 points with eight rebounds and four assists. He was also a plus-21.
“You want to get back on track as soon as possible,” Barrett said. “I was definitely excited to have that opportunity today.”
Barrett watched the Philadelphia match film, in which he missed his first few shots and was not surprised. The irony is in the first season against Indiana, Barrett made his first nine shots.
“The best advice was for me: to have another one tomorrow,” Barrett said. “I’m not the only person who had a bad night filming. I was very happy with the result. “
Coach Tom Thibodeau said he loved Barrett’s mindset.
“Only aggression,” Thibodeau said. “When you don’t shoot you can’t let this affect other parts of your game. He had a very big first game. When you have a game like this, you will pay attention. You have to read the game and how they play you. You have to use their aggressiveness the way they close to the advantage of our team. It does so with penetrating actions and pressure on the defense and forcing the defenses to collapse. “
Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo barely enjoyed this visit to the garden and not just because the Bucks lost.
The Greek Freak, who recently signed a contract extension to stay in Milwaukee for five more years, finished with 25 points, 13 rebounds and five assists.
“It doesn’t feel right, the most famous arena without crowds,” Antetokounmpo said. “Normally, when I come here I see 20 Greek flags, people are encouraged, basically the whole Greek community comes out to support me and my team. It’s always nice. The garden always has that good energy and tonight it was empty. We hope that the next time we get to the garden it will be full ”.
Although the Knicks announced that the obi Toppin will be re-evaluated in 7-10 days, Thibodeau looked as if his rookie lottery selection could come out in up to two weeks with a veal strain, if not more.
Toppin again aggravated a calf injury that was not revealed prior to the season opener, Thibodeau said. The rehabilitation process means that Toppin cannot exert any pressure on his leg for a week and it affects his conditioning. Toppin will not practice again in 2020.
“When you lose that kind of time, with that kind of injury, there will be a period of time for you to get back to speed in terms of play,” Thibodeau said. “And obviously with a calf, you can’t run or jump, so the conditioning component will take that into account.”
It should be noted the last time a Knicks rookie sneaked a calf, it wasn’t good. Allonzo Trier, in 2018-19, celebrated the last 3 ½ weeks of his rookie season with a veal strain. Toppin missed his second straight game Sunday. By Jan. 11, the Knicks are playing eight more games. That could mean Toppin will miss a total of 10 games.
Free agent Austin Rivers, the signatory, is expected to hold his first contact training session on Monday. He missed all four preseason games with a groin shot and almost every workout.
Thibodeau said he plans to leave him behind in the rotation, according to sources, when he is healthy. … Goalkeeper Dennis Smith Jr., who looked uninspired in his 17-minute season debut on Saturday, missed Sunday’s game with a purple quad.