Don't expect to see Kemba Walker hit the floor for Knicks
Knicks guard Kemba Walker (8) watches from the bench during the second quarter against the Denver Nuggets at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, Dec 4, 2021. Credit: Brad Penner
One thing that the Knicks' one-sided losses in the last week have made clear — Kemba Walker is not getting on the floor anytime soon.
With 3:55 remaining in Wednesday night's loss to Indiana, Tom Thibodeau inserted his three rookies — Miles McBride, Quentin Grimes and Jericho Sims — as well as little-used Kevin Knox. But Immanuel Quickley stayed in the game to the end and Walker remained on the bench.
Walker has not played at all since Thibodeau made the move to remove him from the starting lineup seven games ago. Thibodeau said last week that he considers Walker a starter — even if he isn’t starting for the Knicks.
"We have respect for Kemba," Thibodeau said. "But the way we played in that game, you know we thought in the third quarter we still had a shot. We had it down to 14 and if we make the next shot, you know it's 10, and you can make up ground quickly. So we were looking at the guys who were out there.
"Obviously, we didn't get the job done. But we have to focus on our improvement and we always have to do what we think is best for the team."
Knicks need Barrett to find his shot
RJ Barrett has endured a rough stretch of shooting, but he did manage to improve in the last two games heading into Toronto. And Thibodeau stressed that it’s important that the Knicks get Barrett back in place as a regular perimeter threat.
"It’s huge," Thibodeau said. "Last year he started slowly and he ended up shooting over 40 from three, so we know that he'll be there. You know, he got knocked down pretty good being sick. So when you get sick like he was, obviously, he's not in practice. He's not coming back at night to groove his shot. And now he's feeling a lot better. He's able to get back in the gym, so I think we'll get back into rhythm."
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
