Guard depth evident amid Rose’s absence
DETROIT — The Knicks have all their key pieces back from COVID-19, but they still won’t get Derrick Rose until mid-to-late February.
However, Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau, who regards Rose as his favorite player, doesn’t sound too concerned about the surgery that was done to clean out the point guard’s ankle area.
That’s how much he likes his team’s guard depth.
It was on display again in Wednesday’s 94-85 win in Detroit. Though Kemba Walker started the second night of a back-to-back, he had no pep and rookie Miles McBride roared in to the rescue.
Though McBride didn’t score and was 0-for-4, he was a defensive demon and led the club with a plus-39 in 24:33, notching two steals. And he drew raves from Thibodeau.
“When you look at the impact ‘Deuce’ had with ball pressure, that was huge for us,’’ Thibodeau said.
After the Tuesday win in Minnesota, Thibodeau left up in the air whether Walker would play in Detroit on the second night of a back-to-back. However, Walker was a go, playing his first backto-back since early in the season.
“Medical people met with him this morning,’’ Thibodeau said beforehand.
Walker finished with two points and two assists in 20 minutes and didn’t play the fourth quarter.
➤ The rebuilding Pistons shipped out Rose for Dennis Smith Jr. and a future second-round pick to the Knicks in February.
The veteran Rose was a key ingredient in the Knicks’ turnaround. The Pistons didn’t re-sign Smith after last season and he’s now on the Blazers.
Across the season, Thibodeau made mention of Rose’s ankle as a persistent issue. But nobody realized the severity. The news of surgery stirs to memory the playoff series against the Hawks last spring. In Game 4 in Atlanta, Rose limped off the court in the final minutes of the fourth quarter and appeared less than mobile in the series-ending Game 5.
The Knicks still re-signed Rose to a three-year, $43 million deal, though the final year is non-guaranteed. In his first comments on Rose’s surgery, Thibodeau said Tuesday he’s chatted on occasion with Rose since the announcement nearly two weeks ago.
“You never want to see a player get injured but it’s a part of the game,” Thibodeau said.
➤ Only Nerlens Noel, Jericho Sims and Wayne Selden remain in COVID-19 protocols.