Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau says there’s “no right or wrong” option to distribute minutes over the course of a season — solely what works greatest for a crew given its particular circumstances.
“I think each team is different. I think everybody has to run their own race,” Thibodeau mentioned forward of tipoff in opposition to the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday. “You look at some teams. Some teams are playing more guys. Some teams are playing less guys. There’s no right or wrong. There’s what you feel is best for your team, what gives you the best chance to have the most success.”
The Knicks, marred by harm in yet one more season, are with out each their All-Star guard Jalen Brunson and sixth man Miles McBride. Three of their remaining starters — Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart and OG Anunoby — rank top-six in minutes per sport this season.
Bridges leads the league in complete minutes by almost 100, and Hart rating first in minutes per sport and third in complete performed minutes to date.
Thibodeau mentioned gamers put together their our bodies over the course of the common season to have the ability to endure the grueling stretch main into the playoffs.
Tuesday was the primary leg of 4 back-to-backs the Knicks should climate over their remaining 12 regular-season video games.
“There’s a lot of things that go into it and you go into a season with the understanding of what it’s gonna take for a season,” Thibodeau mentioned. “You have to have a mental discipline to get through all the things that may happen. So you’re trying to build those habits all season long, and there’s a number of different ways you can pace your team.
“So I think oftentimes people will look at minutes played, but they don’t understand what’s going on in practice. They don’t understand what you’re doing in recovery. There’s a lot of things that occur, from — maybe there’s not contact in practice. Maybe a guy has a sub in practice. Maybe a guy is not doing practice. There’s a lot that goes into it. So you lean on your medical people. You lean on the players, and then you have an understanding of what it’s gonna take.”
The Knicks coach pointed to minutes distribution throughout different playoff contenders when discussing what it should take for his crew to complete the season in good condition. It’s not unusual for contending groups to lean closely on their starters and core rotation gamers, particularly when there’s playoff standing at stake.
“When you look at teams like Denver, what Jokic is doing. What [Kevin] Durant is doing, what [Jayson] Tatum is doing. There’s a lot of guys that are playing 36-37 minutes,” mentioned Thibodeau. “So whatever your team is, you have to trust that there’s an understanding that goes into how to pace a team.”
Pacing will likely be key for a Knicks crew struggling to generate offense with Brunson out of the rotation.
New York is holding onto the Japanese Convention’s No. 3 seed by a 2.5-game margin and has the sixth-strongest remaining schedule of all 30 NBA groups.
Initially Printed: March 25, 2025 at 6:44 PM EDT
