Knicks Bulletin: “The Knicks have built an identity of toughness.”

The Knicks got a deserved day off on Monday following their win over Cleveland on Sunday even though they were missing (virtually) four starters in that matchup.

With no practice scheduled yesterday as Tom Thibodeau (believe it or not) is prioritizing resting his available players while the banged-up ones heal their wounds, there weren’t a lot of quotes to find in the wild.

As always, however, we did our best and still found some hidden nuggets to share with Knicks fans worldwide. Here they are!

Tom Thibodeau

On rotation players stepping up to make up for the injured and missing starters...

“I thought the unselfishness [stood out], guys making plays for each other. [32] assists is a big-time number. … I thought the guys did a really good job with that.”

On what is allowing these Knicks to keep winning games even with a depleted roster...

“[Toughness] from our players. It’s the makeup of the players. So I think that that’s important.”

”I think Leon [Rose, the team president] and his staff have done a good job of identifying those guys. I love our team. I love how hard they work. I love how they care about winning, how they’re willing to sacrifice for each other. That stuff goes a long way.”

Donte DiVincenzo

On bouncing back from his recent shooting slump against the Cavaliers scoring a game-high 28 points...

“Everybody in the flow of the offense was just moving the ball and just being aggressive. Honestly, (I was) just being my normal self, being aggressive.

On how the role players keep winning games for New York, including Sunday’s matchup at Cleveland...

“We’re collectively together, and everybody wants each other to succeed. I don’t think there’s one guy who wants to go out there and outshine anybody. Tonight was a perfect game to see that. It was very balanced, everybody was getting shots.”

Josh Hart

On pulling off the upset against the Cavs even with a very shorthanded roster...

“Thibs says it all the time: next-man-up mentality. When someone goes down, you gotta try to find a way.”

“Obviously, [Cleveland] has been playing really well. They have guys out, so we can’t make that excuse. We just gotta go out there and just play hard. We had a great game plan, and we gotta go out there and play our game and execute.”

On having an underdog mentality in the NBA...

“I think you’re seeing guys on every team want to compete—no matter what team it is, you see guys as competitors. As hoopers, we always want a bigger role. We always want to go out there and show what we can do. And then when guys go out, that’s an opportunity for us to step into those kinds of roles.”

“Sometimes when you have like six, seven guys (available on gameday) and you’re able to just really play free, playing without a conscience—because at the end of the day, (coach) can’t really sub you out. So you just got to go out there and just play with confidence. I think we did that today as a team.”

Isaiah Hartenstein

On Max Strus poking him in the eye...

“I just went up, he just hit me right in the eye. I got the block, he kind of went down [with his arm], it went in my eye first and then kind of scraped it. That’s kind of what happened.”

Mitchell Robinson

On his rehab and what inspires him these days...

“If Jackie Robinson can keep his faith in God and stay true to himself when he had to fight his toughest battles on a day-to-day basis, I don’t see why I can’t. I’m currently reading the Jackie Robinson book. The first chapter gave me inspiration and motivation, comfort and strength, wisdom and direction to stay true to myself and not fall short. I’ve been fighting battles for a while and I lost most but this battle I’m fighting now, I’m definitely going to come out on top. Strong mind, strong faith and keep trusting in God have my feelings unstoppable.”

Bob Myers (Former NBA General Manager)

On the Knicks’ win against the Cavs on Sunday...

”That can’t happen if you’re Cleveland, it can’t. I know you didn’t have Donovan Mitchell but Brunson goes down after one minute, that means he didn’t play. McBride comes in and plays—Thibodeau checked him and never checked him out… 47 minutes! Which is classic Thibodeau, and he delivered.”

On what is making the New York Knicks a great organization...

“There is an identity. We talk about identity—and people that are watching say, ‘What’s an identity?’ You find out your culture. The Knicks have built an identity of toughness. And it does come from Thibodeau and it comes from Brunson, because Jalen Brunson embodies that identity as well.”

Kendrick Perkins (Former NBA Player)

On the Knicks' season and their outlook...

“Their culture. Their grit. Their tenacity. Their mentality—it’s next man up when it comes to Tom Thibodeau, and the one thing that you can’t replace is heart.”

“The Knicks just keep competing and it comes from the leadership and that’s from your coach and your franchise guy (Jalen Brunson).”

“Think about this: No Julius Randle, no OG Anunoby, no Jalen Brunson... and they go into Cleveland and get the win.”

Stephen A. Smith (TV Personality)

On the Knicks' true talent level this season...

“Leon Rose has done an outstanding job. Tom Thibodeau has done an exceptional job as the coach of this franchise.”

“When you saw OG Anunoby arrive in New York City when through the month of January 12-2, best record in the NBA—they were balling... and then all of the injuries took place: OB goes down, Julius Randle goes down, Mitchell Robinson has been out for most of the season, etc...”

“When you look at it from that perspective, and you think about the pickup of (Bojan) Bogdanovic, the pickup of (Alec) Burks, with the way Jalen Brunson is playing... if those three guys were in the lineup healthy, I think the Knicks would be standing here right now as the no. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference.”

“What can you say? I would definitely crucify the Knicks under normal circumstances—they don’t deserve that here. They’re just injured.”