Knicks Bulletin: “I’m more mad about losing than worrying about how my body feels.”

Wednesday was a day off for the New York Knicks following their unexplainable defeat against the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday—unless you factor in the fact that the hosts were missing four starters, that is.

The Knicks and head coach Tom Thibodeau will enjoy the downtime between their tilt against Atlanta and the reception of the Orlando Magic on Friday considering the many banged-up bodies they are carrying places these days.

Not a lot of content out there to bring to the table today, but we still found some golden nuggets shared by this and that Knick after the game against the Hawks earlier this week.

Tom Thibodeau

On the eventual return of injured players...

“You don’t want to see any of your players get hurt. Obviously, you want to be at full strength. But injuries are part of the game.”

“It’s ‘How quickly can we adapt as a team?’ That’s the challenge that we face. I know the commitment that our guys have made, the sacrifices they’ve made.”

Miles McBride

On playing 93 minutes over the past two games starting one and logging 47 minutes in the other...

“I’m glad Coach trusts me to be playing me those minutes. Just wish we would’ve got the job done.”

On playing 40+ minutes per game these days having a regular-season average of 15 MPG...

“Honestly, I feel fine. I think I’m more mad about losing than worrying about how my body feels. I don’t even think about it. This is what I’ve wanted, to be guarding the best player and to be playing point guard at a high level. This is what I’ve wanted my whole life. So I’ve done whatever I can to prepare for it.”

On how he’s approaching taking over the starting point guard duties and his extraordinary AST:TO (23:1 in the last four games) ratio...

“Really just trying to read the game, watching film, seeing what the other team’s doing and then applying it to the game we’re playing.”

“I think as a point guard, if you have that mindset (trying to avoid TOs), then you’re not gonna make certain types of passes. So you gotta play very confident out there and just see the game.”

On the loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday when the Knicks shot 16-of-52 from 3-point range...

“We’ve gotta make adjustments for our shots. That’s for you guys to say, if we’re tired. We’re never gonna say we’re tired. I think we’ve just gotta keep having the mindset that we’re taking the right shots and they’re gonna fall.”

“We’re doing everything we can. We’re doing as much as we can recovery-wise; the guys that are playing big minutes and working on the chemistry [with] guys coming in and out... It’s tough, but you’ve gotta keep on moving forward. I mean, for us it’s our job.”

On keeping track of the Eastern Conference standings...

“Honestly, no (I don’t follow them closely). It’s hard just to keep up with it. Just gotta take it a game at a time.”

Josh Hart

On having a tough outing against the Hawks in Tuesday’s loss to Atlanta...

“I didn’t really feel that I was really there—I didn’t really show up until the second half. In the first half, I didn’t have that energy and wasn’t flying around. In the beginning of the game I put the onus on myself to be the energy guy and I didn’t come out with energy.”

On having rested for just nine minutes over the past three games...

“That’s an interesting stat, but you know I gotta make sure I bring that every game and every possession I’m out there.”

On trying to remain above the no. 6 seed and avoiding the play-in while waiting for reinforcements...

“At the end of the day, I feel if this team gets healthy, we can make noise. Obviously, you don’t want to be in the play-in. You’d like to have that three or five days of rest going into the first round.”

“It’s a cliché Thibs thing, but we’re just trying to take it one day at a time. We’re going to get guys back soon, but we have to keep pushing. At the end of the day, we are where we are, and I like this team.”

On staying updated with what’s going on around the Eastern Conference and checking the standings...

“Sometimes when [the standings] pops up (I check them)—I’m not thinking about it too much.“