The Knicks are back.
Josh Hart is not.
Here are some words.
Mike Brown
On embracing the recent losing streak:
“I hope no one takes this the wrong way, but I embrace it. When you go through what we’ve gone through,
nobody wants to lose, but it helps us be better. It helps me be better.”
On accountability and leadership during adversity:
“I know our guys care. I know they want to win, and it’s my time to keep it real with them, tell the truth. But also coach them and show them confidence and strength during this time. And that’s while trying to help them, so that’s all I’m trying to do.”
On Miles McBride as a point-of-attack defender:
“Defensively, he’s an extremely good on-ball defender, especially when it comes to the pick-and-roll game. He’s strong, he’s powerful, he’s quick, he’s athletic and he’s a little longer than what you think so when that screen comes, he knows you should one-two into the ball, get that shoulder and hip over that screen at the same time as the ball. This way, your opponent won’t have an advantage in the pick-and-roll game.”
On McBride’s defense on James Harden:
“Obviously, there was a size disadvantage with James, but he did a great job on James. You’re not gonna stop him, you just hope he misses some of those shots, and he did. Deuce tried to get up underneath him.”
On McBride’s shooting gravity as a member of the starting lineup:
“He has to be guarded. You watched during the course of the game, they had Kawhi on him and, you know, who would have thunk if OG and Mikal and some of these other guys are on the floor, Kawhi is matched up with Deuce; it’s because he can shoot.”
On Guerschon Yabusele’s aggressiveness and impact against LA:
“Yabu was huge. The lineups that we faced warranted it. He was great defensively, he was aggressive — I love his aggressiveness. That’s something we’ve talked about a few times — if you’re able to catch the ball and make a quick decision, snap drive it, as quick as you are, as athletic as you are, go to dunk it. Go to dunk it. I don’t care if you miss it, whatever, go to dunk it because you’re more than capable of turning it over on people. We need him to continue being aggressive if he can snap–drive it. Especially at his size, attacking the rim with aggression. And then we need him to rebound, that’s one of the big reasons he’s on the floor. For him to get out and help in that department, that was big.”
Miles McBride
On his defensive identity:
“I know I can be one of the best point-of-attack defenders in the NBA. I believe in myself, I believe that guarding really gets us going, gets us out in transition, which we did throughout the second half, which was really big for us.”
On defending James Harden:
“He’s crafty, but people don’t know how physical he is. If you don’t use a little bit of physicality back, he has you beat in a lot of aspects, obviously shotmaking. I pride myself on what I do. You’re not gonna be able to take away everything, but make it as hard as you can.”
Karl-Anthony Towns
On McBride’s two-way impact:
“Not only his shooting that was great — it was fantastic tonight and he’s been great shooting all year shooting the ball — but his defense was great, too. It kept us in the game. His shooting and his defense gave us a chance every possession to guard our lead. Deuce was special tonight.”
Jalen Brunson
On moving forward after the skid:
“We had a losing streak. I think for us, we have to move on from there. We’re going to learn from it. We’re going to learn to get better from it and find ways to win and get better.”
On McBride’s reliability:
“He plays great. Whatever is asked of him, he provides and he produces. That’s just who he is as a player, as a competitor, as a person. Whatever is asked of him, he’s gonna contribute and do the best he can.”
On Guerschon Yabusele staying ready amid a season of struggles:
“He stays ready. I think him playing the way he did, especially in the second half, is fantastic. It’s what we needed.”
