Shake Milton on his first day as a Knick: “Everybody’s gotta do whatever it takes.”

A few days after we first heard some whispers linking the New York Knicks to former Detroit Pistons bought-out guard Shake Milton...

...a few hours after he cleared waivers on Monday and was able to sign with the Knickerbockers...

...finally, the franchise announced the addition of the Owasso, OK, native to the roster on Tuesday morning ahead of their matchup against the Hawks later that day, making him available to play—although Milton ultimately didn’t make his debut on Mar. 5.

Milton, however, debuted in front of the microphones of the reporters attending the game played Tuesday inside Madison Square Garden and briefly addressed the media before tip-off time.

The guard, who can man both the point and two, was traded to the Detroit Pistons from the Minnesota Timberwolves earlier this season after the relationship between player and team didn’t quite work out as both parties expected. Milton only played four games for the lowly Pistons before agreeing to a buyout with Detroit before March 1st, which means he is eligible to play in postseason games with the Knicks.

“The situation in Detroit, knowing what direction they wanted to go... Just talked to my agent and the front office of the Knicks, and felt like it would be a good fit,” Milton explained.

Milton played for the Philadelphia 76ers five seasons after getting there via draft-day trade from the Dallas Mavericks—coincidentally, he is part of Jalen Brunson’s draft class. He appeared in 254 games for Philly, starting 45 of them and putting up an average 9-2-2 line in around 20 minutes of play per game.

The guard is now joining a team led by Tom Thibodeau, of whom he shared some thoughts on Tuesday.

“I don’t know, I feel like those are the type of coaches that I like, that I’m used to—old-school, tough, right to the point,” Milton told reporters. “It’s funny, you can kind of see [his] personality come out and I haven’t even been here that long.

“But even at shoot around, he’s tough, he’s on guys... but at the same time, he’s cracking jokes, too, so kinda able to see both sides of it. It’ll be fun.”

Milton revealed that knowing Knicks Executive Vice President William “World Wide Wes” Wesley had an impact on his decision to agree to a contract termination with Detroit and his choice of New York as his next stop at least for the remainder of the season.

“Yeah. [Wesley] is my guy. He’s been my guy for a minute,” Milton said. “He’s there any time I need him. Whether it’s to talk, do whatever. He’s always there.”

Asked if knowing WWW truly factored into his ultimate decision, Milton said, “Yeah, most definitely.“

“Just the comfortability. I didn’t want any promises or anything like that,” Milton added. “I knew my job was to come in, be a part of the team, work hard, and be ready for any opportunity. Honestly, that’s what I was looking for. Just to be able to join these guys, get under coach Thibs, and really just study, learn, and be prepared.”

Milton has signed a minimum contract to play for New York throughout the remainder of the regular season and the playoffs, per Fred Katz of The Athletic. He had $1.2M left on his contract with Detroit and he was expected to make $5M next year, although none of that latter figure was guaranteed money.

Whether he’ll play a large role or not, Milton doesn’t know yet, although he already appreciates the mindset of these Knicks.

“I can tell—I haven’t been around too long but being out there at shootaround,” Milton said, “[but] you can tell guys are locked in.

“Every win is important, [and] I think that’s where everybody’s head is. Everybody’s gotta do whatever it takes for the team to help us win. You like being around an atmosphere like that.”

That “atmosphere,” as he called it, is one that he already experienced in the past as a member of the Sixers for a handful of years before moving on from Philly.

“You know in Philly we were going against the Knicks a lot—so just a tough team defensively, togetherness about them,” Milton said. “You know every single night they’re gonna go in and fight, and it’s not gonna be an easy night for you.

“I feel like I’ve already adopted that mindset, and being around the guys, it hasn’t been too long, but just at shootaround and seeing how they work, and the attention to detail, you can see everybody is locked in.”

Milton didn’t make his debut on Tuesday against the Hawks with Jalen Brunson out nursing a bruised knee but he already took a bunch of shots with the rest of his teammates before the game, ultimately earning a DNP-CD.

The guard is expected to appear in the next game played in New York, however, scheduled for Friday as the Knicks will take on the Orlando Magic at MSG before hosting Milton’s former team, the Sixers, twice in three days between Sunday and Tuesday.