Josh Hart's arrival cuts into minutes of a few young Knicks
New York Knicks guard Josh Hart and guard Immanuel Quickley talk on the court in the first half of an NBA basketball game against the New Orleans Pelicans at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
The arrival of Josh Hart undoubtedly has helped the Knicks, as evidenced by the 5-0 record they brought into Monday’s game against the Celtics since his arrival. But it has come at a cost to some.
RJ Barrett has seen his minutes drop from approximately 36 per game since he returned from a finger injury to 29 in the last five games. And Quentin Grimes, who was averaging 35 minutes per game since joining the starting lineup on Dec. 4, has averaged 22 per game in the last five.
“The big thing is, when you have quality depth, you have versatility,” coach Tom Thibodeau said. “Just go out and go as hard as you can. That’s what I like about Quentin — he’s played long minutes, he’s played short minutes. You can start him, you can bring him off the bench and he’s going to be the same every day.
“We’ve got a bunch of guys — [Immanuel Quickley] is the same way. I’ve mentioned this before; even though Quick and Josh — even though they’re not starting, I view them as starters. So those guys will be rotating in and out and I think it keeps them where we can play a high-energy game and I think that’s a plus for us.”
The Knicks had won seven of their last eight games and 25 of 39 entering Monday’s game. They had moved into a virtual tie for fifth with the Nets in the Eastern Conference.
Playing catch-up
With few practices — as well as the All-Star break — it’s been a challenge to get Hart completely up to speed with what Knicks are doing.
“Yeah. There’s a lot of different things that you do,” Thibodeau said. “Because we’re young, we’re together a lot more than some teams . . . But you also have your video guys, so guys can come in and run through offense, run through defense. Your player-development guys — then you have your young guys that can go. You want your young guys on the floor as much as possible, because the only way they can develop is by doing it. And so, our young guys are gym rats, and I think that’s a big plus for us.”
Celtics’ Brown is absent
The Celtics were without Jaylen Brown on Monday, who was absent for what the team called personal reasons. Derrick White got the start in his place.
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.
