Within the midst of his 39-point efficiency in opposition to the Los Angeles Lakers Thursday night time, Jalen Brunson suffered an ankle damage that knocked him out of the sport — and the remainder of the Knicks’ West Coast highway journey.
Brunson was so pained after hurting his ankle driving to the ring in additional time that he stood on the free-throw line throughout the entirety of the following timeout. He stayed in to sink each free throws, then instantly headed to the locker room, lacking the tip of the Lakers’ 113-109 additional time win.
New York has 4 extra highway video games within the subsequent 9 days, culminating in a nationally televised rematch with the Golden State Warriors on ABC on March 15. Brunson will miss all these contests and extra.
The Knicks shall be with out Brunson once they face the 33-29 Los Angeles Clippers, the 32-29 Sacramento Kings (7-3 of their final 10 video games), the Portland Path Blazers (the NBA’s second-best defense since Jan. 19) and the Warriors, who defeated them in New York on Tuesday. It may imply 4 losses.
The Knicks have occupied third place within the Jap Convention since Dec. 15. They nonetheless have a 3.5-game lead on the Milwaukee Bucks and a 4.5-game lead on the Indiana Pacers, however that might evaporate shortly if the Knicks stumble out West.
Ending fourth as an alternative of third may very well be the distinction between dealing with the inexperienced Detroit Pistons within the first spherical of the playoffs or the Indiana Pacers, who knocked the Knicks out within the second spherical final season.
New York was already brief on depth and leaning closely on its starters, with Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart main the NBA in minutes per recreation. Brunson is at present nineteenth within the league, and the longer he’s out, the longer that depth shall be examined.
The saving grace for the Knicks? Milwaukee has to make its personal five-game highway journey to the West Coast in 10 days.
