Win the NBA Cup now, deal with schedule losses later.
That’s where the New York Knicks are at, right?
Here’s a bunch of what we heard from the protagonists of yesterday’s affair.
Mike Brown
On the need for Towns to stop
making dumb fouls:
“With KAT, obviously, he can score. He had 40 tonight. I said it before, he’s a walking double-double. He just has to continue to try not pick up cheap fouls. Now we have to sit him for an X amount of minutes when he needs to be on the floor. So, you know, the 40 and 13, it doesn’t surprise me at all because he’s more than capable. But if you’re gonna be a great player, we expect more from him. I’m sure he does too.”
On Tyler Kolek’s first start:
“For a young guy, he tried to do what he could while he was out there. But we needed more from him, probably more so defensively than offensively at the end of the day if we expect to get a win on the road.”
On the team’s competitiveness without Brunson on Tuesday:
“We did fight in spurts. But I’m greedy just like everyone in that locker room is. We’re all competitive and we know we could’ve done a better job.”
On Julius Randle’s aggression killing New York:
“He was just aggressive. He was just taking it right to us. We started blitzing Edwards, and they basically just gave him the ball and he put his head down and he attacked our chests. Again, we gotta give them credit, because he used his footwork, he used his power, he used his strength, he used his quickness to get by us, to finish at the rim and to get to the free-throw line.”
On his defensive adjustments against Minny and using a zone-D in the second quarter:
“We wanted to mix it up. We weren’t getting many stops. Edwards was playing at a high level, and we wanted to try to just give them a different look.”
On Trey Jemison III’s impact:
“He’s a physical presence. He’s a guy who communicates extremely well for a young guy. Guys like playing with him because they know he’s going to set screens and get them open. And he’s got good feet and a good motor.”
Karl-Anthony Towns
On his main goal whether or not Jalen Brunson plays:
“Win. The same thing, must go out there and find a way to win. Just go out there and win. I don’t worry about that. I come out here to win.”
On carrying the Knicks in a loss:
“I knew what the situation was. I knew that the ball would find me more today and I wanted to be aggressive, impact winning. I thought I just wanted to do whatever it took to come out of here with a win. Obviously we didn’t do enough, I didn’t do enough. This is going to be a tough plane ride home.”
On returning to Minnesota:
“It can be two truths in that. You can be at peace knowing the business cycle keeps going and business is business. After the year we had last year in New York, feeling more at home, fans welcoming you in more, obviously you can be at peace with it, but it still stings when you’re not walking into this locker room. Coming to this amazing state, this city and realize you’re not going to the training facility anymore, you’re not making that drive in, you’re not doing all that. Now you’re in a hotel, it hits different.”
On the Timberwolves organization:
“I know we’ve done a lot of amazing things in the last 12 months in New York, but I had nine years here. Just watching this organization grow from being a lottery team to now being a Western Conference juggernaut, to be part of that growth, part of that organization’s rise, to be blessed with the opportunity to change a lot of people’s lives. And a lot of the kids that grew up watching me now are adults. Some of them got kids themselves. To be able to give them something to cheer for, it’s what it’s really all about.”
On emotions returning to Minnesota:
“Hell yeah, I was yesterday, me and my girl was. Going to our house here, it’s different when you’re not here. We talked about the lifestyle here and how awesome it is to be here and all the memories here, just reliving them, driving by the same places that we always used to go to, getting our coffees and stuff. And then being able to have HopeKids at the Theater yesterday, having that kind of community event that I was always having here, it’s crazy that it’s the second year and it still feels the same.”
On his relationship with Anthony Edwards:
“I talk to him almost every day. Spent a lot of time with him Monday. Just happy that he’s continuing his journey and that I get to watch it.”
On Minnesota fans:
“For the fans to just, even after two seasons away, to respect me the way they do and to think of me so highly and to appreciate what I left on the court tonight, it means a lot.”
Tyler Kolek
On his first career start:
“Anytime you get an opportunity like that, you try to take advantage of it. These guys got confidence in me to go out there and play my game and do what I do. It’s too bad, we just couldn’t get the win.”
Josh Hart
On the flagrant foul incident with Gobert:
“We were battling for a rebound, I felt like I got pushed and then the other one he kind of smacked down, hit the ball and then hit me. I wasn’t trying to hit his knee, I didn’t really make too much contact, obviously. Don’t wanna do anything around there, doesn’t help that he’s 7-foot-4. I’m trying to push him but his knee is kinda up there. Just out of frustration, I gotta be better.”
On failing to finish Tuesday’s game strong:
“We battled back and then we just didn’t play good enough to finish it. I had too many turnovers. Some of those turnovers turned into easy baskets, and that kind of kills any momentum we kind of have. I gotta be better.”
Julius Randle
On handling adversity:
“I haven’t been great at that in my career. I put so much into the game and work really hard, so you kind of become a perfectionist, mentally, and for me that’s always been tough.”
On moving on from New York:
“I’m over it. I had a great time in New York, accomplished a lot of great things. The city was great to me, but I’m happy to be here in Minnesota, playing in front of the fans every day, being a part of this team. I’m home. Where I’m at is home. So I think I’ve kind of got past that, and I’m just happy where I am now.”
Anthony Edwards
On Karl-Anthony Towns’ performance:
“I didn’t even know he had 40 until after the game. But he played his ass off. We all know how much of a special talent he is. I definitely wasn’t trying to match him. I was happy to see him doing his thing.”
Chris Finch (Timberwolves Head Coach)
On Julius Randle’s impact on Tuesday’s game:
“Being able to shake off the poor start and play inspired basketball and really be the guy who turns the game around in the fourth or seals it in a lot of ways, I was proud of him tonight.”
