No, you didn’t get it wrong.
The Knicks won the Cup on Tuesday, beat the Pacers on Thursday, are back in the schedule facing the Sixers today, and will play once again on Sunday. Sheesh…
Here’s the latest from your unbeatable superheroes.
Mike Brown
On Jalen Brunson’s late-game confidence:
“Our MVP, the league’s MVP, Jalen Brunson. As Jalen’s walking out on the floor, Jalen turns to me, he says, ‘I’m getting this win. I’m going for it.’ I said, ‘You do you. That’s who you are. You do you.’ He went out and he came through. That’s what real MVPs do. I’m glad I’m part of his team.”
On Tyler Kolek’s growth:
“I think any time you go out and you have success as a group, it gives you confidence, it adds to that belief. That Cup run is just a small sample of what it could be at the end of the day. He had a great run, especially in that game. And his confidence is continuing to go up. And as a young guy, there are probably times it’s going to go back down a couple notches. But we’re all here to uplift him and remind him how good of a player he is.”
On Kolek’s opportunity:
“The opportunity is there for him. So to see him take advantage of it is huge. Only he can do that.”
On challenging Kolek defensively:
“And I’m not comparing all small white guys with each other when I give TJ McConnell as an example. But I say, look, this dude has been in the league for 30 years. And it’s because of his toughness first, especially defensively. If there’s anybody in this league you need to take a look at, it’s him. Because you have a superpower offensively — you can score. You have a second superpower — you can pass. You have some quickness too. You have a good feel. But defensively, you got to develop a superpower for your size. And you got good feet. Now it’s about using those and being physically tough every single possession.”
On team standards:
“Our guys had plenty of opportunities to throw the towel in. It’s not our group. We have a standard, and no matter who’s on the floor, we expect everybody to hold each other accountable to what our standard is.”
On Kolek’s performance vs. Indiana:
“Tyler was fabulous. He was fabulous on both ends of the floor. You’re talking about a guy that played 26 minutes and had 11 assists, so he impacted the game on both ends of the floor.”
On the Knicks’ decision not to hang an NBA Cup banner:
“It was just an organizational decision at the end of the day. I will say any time you can be the last one standing in anything you do, it’s an honor. I’ve been lucky and fortunate to do it four different times, having a chance to do it six different times with three different teams. And this is no different. It was a great run. Our guys got a taste of something that can be special at the end of the day for us, where there is a different type of pressure than the regular season. And we all feel good about it. I feel good about it. But it was an organizational decision.”
On the need for refocusing quickly after the Cup win:
“Hey, it was a heck of a run. We can cherish this. We can talk about this for the rest of our lives. We can talk about it with our grandkids at the end of the day. But there’s more to this season. This is a taste of what we can do. We can’t afford to get comfortable because of winning it at this point in the season. And so we got to get back to work. And it’s going to be tough because everybody is human and it’s natural to accomplish something like that and then relax to a certain degree, thinking you’ve arrived and now it’s time to take a deep breath. No, no, no, no, no. Now there’s an extra target on our back. And we have to live up to what we believe the expectations are, starting yesterday.”
On the schedule challenges following a trip to the Cup final:
“I’ve been praising the NBA’s song this whole time and the Cup run was fun and first-class and all that stuff. But somehow, someway, they have to look at the back end of the schedule for anybody who is in the final game. Because it’s almost like you get penalized for winning it, schedule-wise. We’ve talked about it all year how the games are so close now. But you get penalized for winning the Cup. Everybody goes through it, but you hope you get a little bit of a break during that. But we’ll figure it out.”
On planning for minute-managing after the Cup run:
“During that run, this is what I’ll do come playoff time. Everybody’s minutes are increased because you’re going after something. Now we’re back to our regular-season games. Minutes will go down to what I think they should average out for the regular season. I’m going to go back to watching guys’ minutes more carefully, which is going to give other guys an opportunity and hopefully our guys will get their minutes back to where they need to be come the end of the regular season.”
Jalen Brunson
On struggling early against the Pacers:
“I was garbage. To start the game, and then in the second half was garbage as well. I want to thank the lord for Tyler Kolek, for playing the way he’s playing and saving me. We found a way to win this one.”
On trusting the last play call:
“Mike drew up a play and allowed me to get right. I asked him if I could go for the win and he said sure. But I work at it and it’s a shot I’m comfortable taking and just happy it went in that time.”
On Tyler Kolek saving him and the Knicks on Thursday:
“I want to thank the Lord for Tyler Kolek for saving me.”
On Kolek’s work ethic:
“He works as hard as anyone. This dude’s always in the gym. He has that ability to stay ready because of his work ethic. The world may be surprised to it, but we knew this was what he was capable of.”
On the banner decision:
”Was I part of the discussion? No. But I kind of don’t see the need for it. It’s not my decision. We have a lot of goals as a team and I think we achieved one of them winning the NBA Cup. But it’s not something you celebrate. You enjoy it for that time, that day. But there’s a lot of basketball to be played.
“I’m good with (the decision). We still know that we won it. But I’m okay with it.”
On Kolek’s readiness:
”He works tremendously hard. When it comes to situations like this, he stays ready. It’s a credit to his mindset. When he gets the opportunity, his number is called, he’s ready to go. He’s been producing these last few games. I have the utmost respect for him and how he’s grown as a player.”
Tyler Kolek
On the trust from his teammates:
“Just being out there, being able to have my teammates’ trust. They’re looking to give me the ball. They know I’m going to make plays. They know I’m going to give them the ball, too. Just having the trust of my guys and my coaches.”
On believing in the process:
“The work always pays off and it’s undefeated. What you put in, you’re going to get out. I firmly believe in that. I put in a lot of time.”
On sharing the ball:
“They’re willing to give me the ball and I want to give them the ball, too. Just having the trust of my guys and with my coaches.”
On his college mindset:
“I didn’t miss a night. I know a lot of guys say that, but I did not miss a night. I had this anxiety or fear over me that if I wasn’t in the gym, I wouldn’t do well in the next game or this or that.”
Rick Carlisle
On the Knicks’ shot at an NBA title:
“They’re a great team. They were a great team last year. I think this is one of the most compelling seasons that I’ve seen. There are five, six teams that could win it. You’ve got to get on a roll at the right time and health is a major part of it. I like the Knicks’ chances very much.”
Mike Breen
On Guerschon Yabusele’s struggles:
“Every turnover, every missed shot, every defensive mistake is so magnified because he so desperately wants to play well.”