The pre-set part of the SummerLeague is over for the Knicks, who dropped another one on Thursday to move to a final 1-3 game before playing one final, extra game against the 2-2 Mavericks on Friday.
Enjoy it even if you loathe it, cause there won’t be hoops for nearly three months. Nearly. Three. Damn. Months.
Here’s some of the last quotes we got before the NBA world goes into hybernation mode.
Jalen Brunson
On the challenge of defending the Knicks’ NBA championship:
“It will be different, for sure. Obviously, for the first eight years I went through disappointment, obviously losing at the end of the season. And now winning, I think it’s an even bigger challenge. Now, it’s a target on your back. Now, players and teams have changed, they’ve gotten better.
“So, how are we going to evolve as a team? How are we going to figure out what’s the next step for us? And that’s going to be a really big, important question coming in the training camp: How are we going to be better? How are we going to literally look at the trophy, know that was last year and then forget about it? And so, it’s going to be a very interesting training camp to see where our mind’s at. But I’m excited for the challenge.”
On remaining hungry after winning the championship:
“Absolutely. You definitely lose a lot of time — obviously for the right reason; we got it done — to be able to go through the summer and realize, ‘All right, there’s a lot on your plate now.’
“How are you going to remain hungry? How are you going to remain focused? How are you going to push the envelope for you to be better the next time? So, those are all questions that I believe I have the answers for. I feel like I know what I’m doing to push myself. But only time will tell.”
On when he began believing the Knicks could win the championship:
“I think once we got to the conference finals — obviously we lost there a season ago — just getting back there, back to where we were, we understand what we did last time and how can we change that.
“I think once we started to continue to win there, [I knew] we [would] actually have a chance. But it was I think the best part about it: We just kept chipping away the entire season and just kept chipping away, chipping away. You just never knew when things were going to break through. And having that mindset, then once they actually did, it was kind of a sigh of relief.”
On Mitchell Robinson leaving the Knicks:
“First and foremost, I love Mitch. I’m happy for Mitch. I will always love Mitch except those four times we play him.
“But, that’s my brother. I’m super excited for him. It’s a great opportunity for him. And, yeah, I’m happy … except for those four times.”
Himar Ojeda (Alba Berlin’s Sport Director)
On Jack Kayil’s dedication to basketball and development:
“With him, it’s always basketball. He has a conviction and commitment on trying to be the best possible player he can be. He put a lot of effort in trying to take care of himself physically, mentally — sometimes even too much for a young kid. … You know, he’s 19 and he acts like a veteran in certain routines. But that’s why he’s been successful.”
LeBron James
On the unsung hero of the Knicks’ championship run:
“Honestly, the unsung hero of the whole NBA Finals run was OG Anunoby.”
On Mike Brown diversifying the Knicks’ offense:
“They diversified their offensive portfolio. It was a lot of Jalen Brunson pick-and-roll last year. But when Mike Brown brought in the little pinch-post with Karl-Anthony Towns, it didn’t allow you to sit on just one action. They had the highest playoff-point-differential of all-time of over 14.5 points, which is insane.”
Adam Silver
On LeBron James’ free agency complicating the NBA schedule making:
“We have to finish up the schedule and where LeBron plays affects the schedule… It will influence how we set the schedule — opening week, Christmas. So I need him to make a decision.”
