Brunson wears boot while sitting out 2nd straight game
LOS ANGELES — Jalen Brunson (bruised left foot) sat out for the second straight game Sunday against the Lakers after leaving the opener of the Knicks’ four-game road trip Thursday night in Sacramento at halftime.
Coach Tom Thibodeau said Brunson remains dayto-day, but he was wearing a walking boot on the bench Sunday night. ESPN also reported during its broadcast that he is “unlikely” to play in Tuesday’s road trip finale in Portland.
“Just continue to do his treatments and we’ll see where he is. When he’s ready to go, he’s ready to go,” Thibodeau said. “It’s not Jalen by himself. It’s Jalen with the medical. So he’s got a say in it, but the medical has to clear him. So there’s a number of people involved in a decision. We’re not going to put him in harm’s way.
“So if he gets cleared and he feels good, he’ll play. And if he needs more time, he’ll get more time and it’s not just Jalen, it’s all of our players.”
➤ Immanuel Quickley had a strong bounce-back game Saturday against the Clippers after two straight poor shooting outings, although he didn’t see it that way.
Quickley scored a teambest 26 points and added 10 rebounds while starting in place of Brunson, although the Knicks dropped their third straight game after winning their previous nine. Quickley, the Knicks’ regular sixth man, had missed 21 of 27 shots attempts — and 14 of 18 from 3-point range — in the previous two games after scoring 38 points in a career-high 55 minutes last Sunday in a double-overtime win in Boston.
“Nothing changed, honestly,” said Quickley, who finished with 15 points on 6-of-12 shooting in the Knicks’ 112-108 win over the Lakers Sunday. “Sometimes you make shots, sometimes you miss shots. But you can always control your energy level, competitiveness and your spirit.
So nothing changed.”
➤ LeBron James missed his seventh straight game since suffering a tendon injury in his right foot on Feb. 26, but the Lakers had four of their previous six without the four-time league MVP. The 38-year-old James is expected to be reevaluated in about two weeks, according to the team. Anthony Davis (foot) was available for the Lakers.