Knicks, retooled Nets trying to remain in postseason race

The Knicks and Nets had vastly different trade deadlines, but as they met at Madison Square Garden on Monday night, they faced the same challenge: How to best integrate key pieces quickly while looking to play meaningful basketball in late April.

Both teams had the same trump card: While the Nets suffered massive losses in Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, the players they got in return are viewed as strong character guys and hard workers. Josh Hart continues to get rave reviews from Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau, meaning that integration has felt less complicated than it otherwise would be.

“It’s exciting to really see the potential of our group and really see what we can do on both ends of the floor as we get to know each other a little bit more,” Nets coach Jacque Vaughn said.

“I think we saw, having one game underneath our belt, not a lot of practice time, you saw the potential for us on the defensive end of the floor. [It’s] what we can do on a nightly basis to give ourselves a chance to win, and that’s pretty impressive. The want, the work, the ability to show up — this group has it in them. There was a concentrated and focused shootaround. Pretty impressive to see.”

The new-look Nets have played two full games together, with Dorian Finney-Smith, Cam Johnson, Mikal Bridges and Spencer Dinwiddie all playing significant minutes (all four started Monday night). The loss of Durant and Irving has made them a more defense-focused team, but though they’re markedly less dangerous than they were, they’ve also extricated themselves from an unforgettable, dramatic and ultimately disappointing era in franchise history.

The Knicks have had the luxury of being slightly more conservative with Hart, who played 26 minutes in his debut against the Jazz. The gritty two-way player entered for the second time in the latter part of the third quarter, played the rest of the game and hit two pivotal three-pointers.

“We knew that coming in,” Thibodeau said of Hart’s basketball IQ. “He’s been in the league a long time and all the intangibles that he brings we saw in the game — just the way he approaches practice, how he gets himself ready to play. I think it’s a great fit for us.”

Vaughn, too, said Bridges and Dinwiddie made adaptation easy. He often has preached simplicity, but trading Durant and Irving — and thus the superstar-type player who thrives on simpler isolation plays — might have threatened to upend that. Not so, he said.

The current offense still “relies on a simple form and I think that’s why those guys were able to play in a real NBA game when they hadn’t really been around each other because some of the things that we were doing could carry over,” Vaughn said.

It gives the Nets the “ability to put different people in the lineup and sub and continue to have a high level of play.”

Notes & quotes: Thibodeau said Mitchell Robinson (returning from thumb surgery) still hasn’t progressed to contact, though the team is hopeful that he’ll get there in the two practices after the All-Star break. Thibodeau could not say for sure that Robinson will be back for the Knicks’ first game after the break against the Wizards on Feb. 24. “As soon as they say he’s ready, he’s ready,” Thibodeau said. “He’s got to get good. Conditioning-wise, he’s doing a lot on the court, but there’s no contact . . . I want the medical people to make that decision along with Mitch.” . . . Seth Curry (adductor) will do some more core work Tuesday and might be able to play on Wednesday against Miami, Vaughn said. He hasn’t played since Feb. 4.

By Laura Albanese

laura.albanese@newsday.com@AlbaneseLaura

Laura Albanese is a reporter, feature writer and columnist covering local professional sports teams; she began at Newsday in 2007 as an intern.