HOUSTON — Tom Thibodeau has often praised veteran guards Derrick Rose and Evan Fournier for how they handled the extra time out of the Knicks’ rotation, and the head coach said he’ll be back on this road trip. I believe that he returned to the court due to an injury at the Worth of them.
Jalen Brunson missed three straight games on Saturday night with a sore right hip. Knicks beat Rockets, 108-88RJ Barrett also suffered a lacerated finger in the opening minutes of Tuesday’s loss in Dallas and remained on the sidelines.
Asked about Fournier and Rose, who scored eight goals in 20 minutes (four in 11 minutes), Thibodeau said “I think it’s important” before the win. “Wherever you are in terms of teams, we have a lot of young players on our team and they are in the rotation. I want to have proper veterans around them so they can.
“We always want veterans to teach young players the tricks of the trade. I think it will help speed up the process.”
Thibodeau called Fournier “a true professional”. After scoring 11 points in 17 minutes in San Antonio on Thursday in his first appearance in 23 games since Nov. 13, Rose and Fournier set a good example, he said. Younger players like Quentin Grimes and Myles McBride.
“I think trial and error is a big part of learning, so they have to go through things,” Thibodeau said. “There’s going to be some conflicts. How do you handle them all, and sometimes, man, this league is a roller coaster.
“Sometimes it’s going well, but all of a sudden things change very quickly for you and it could be going in the opposite direction. And you have to be able to handle both. I think it’s very important to have the right veterans around you.”
After going scoreless in San Antonio Thursday night, Mitchell Robinson had a more aggressive game against the Rockets, posting 6 points, 12 rebounds (6 offensive), 3 blocked shots and 3 steals in 33 minutes. recorded.
“He was great, especially late,” said Thibodeau. “Played a lot of big time multiple effort. On the offensive end, the offensive rebound was big. On the defensive side, he was protecting the rim, defending rebounds and getting loose his ball.”
Branson trained on the court with his father and Knicks assistant coach Rick Branson before the game.
Thibodeau said the $104 million point guard is “coming closer and closer.” Thibodeau added that Barrett has mostly done “cardio” since injuring his hand in Dallas.
Center Alperen Sengun (waist) is out for the Rockets.
