New York Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau kept his explanation brief for why Alec Burks did not play in the second half of their 105-93 win against the Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday, March 14.
“Basketball,” Thibodeau told reporters. “Just basketball.”
Once Thibodeau’s favorite during his first tenure with the Knicks, Burks’ second stint in New York is turning out to be a disaster.
Burks scored five points on 2 of 5 shooting in just 4 minutes and 18 seconds, his least amount of playing time since 2018. He opened the second quarter with a basket but Thibodeau took him out of the game after the veteran guard missed consecutive jumpers and turned the ball over in a span of 67 seconds.
Knicks starting point guard Jalen Brunson replaced Burks with 8:47 left in the second quarter.
Burks never returned as Miles McBride played all the backup guard minutes for the rest of the game. McBride had a plus-13 rating in 22 minutes, scoring 6 points on 3 of 6 shooting with 3 rebounds and 1 steal. The third-year guard also contested five shots and had one deflection, according to NBA.com’s hustle stats.
Burks had none and was minus-1 in his short appearance.
The Knicks re-acquired Burks from the Detroit Pistons at the trade deadline along with Bojan Bogdanovic for Quentin Grimes, Evan Fournier, Malachi Flynn, Ryan Arcidiacono, and two second-round picks.
In 14 games since the trade, the 32-year-old Burks averaged 7.1 points and 1.6 rebounds in 14.2 minutes but he’s only shooting 31.3% from the field and worse, 28.1% from the 3-point range.
He was averaging 12.6 points on 39.4% overall shooting and 40.1% from the 3-point range for the Pistons before the trade.
OG Anunoby Downgraded to Questionable
Knicks 3-and-D wing OG Anunoby has been downgraded to questionable after re-aggravating his elbow injury in Portland.
It was concerning news for the Knicks after Anunoby brushed off the second-quarter incident and returned to finish the game, playing 36 minutes.
“It’s just sore,” Anunoby told reporters, per The Athletic’s Fred Katz. “Nothing really happened. Just went for a ball. And it hurt randomly, but it’s fine.”
Anunoby even told reporters after the game that he plans to suit up against the Sacramento Kings this Saturday, March 16.
“That’s the plan,” Anunoby told reporters, per New York Post’s Stefan Bondy. ” I wasn’t thinking about not playing.”
If Anunoby misses time, Burks and Bogdanovic have to step up their games.
Knicks Star Wants OG Anunoby to Rest if He’s Hurt
While Brunson, who scored 45 points against the Trail Blazers, commended Anunoby’s toughness for playing through discomfort in his elbow, he wants him healthy for their postseason run.
“I feel like if he’s hurt, he wouldn’t play,” Brunson told reporters following Anunoby’s re-injury scare. “I think a lot of us have mindsets like that.”
Anunoby briefly left the game in the final 3 1/2 minutes of the second quarter after his steal on Portland’s big man Deandre Ayton triggered soreness in his surgically repaired right elbow.
