PORTLAND, Ore. — Tom Thibodeau revealed that Jalen Brunson, not far removed from his scary knee contusion, was operating on a minutes restriction in the games leading up to his 45-point gem in Thursday’s 105-93 win over the Trail Blazers.
Brunson played an average of less than 30 minutes in his previous three games — including 27 in Tuesday’s win over the Sixers.
It was the fewest minutes Brunson logged since Jan. 9, not counting the 47-second appearance before suffering the knee contusion in Cleveland on March 3.
But then Brunson played 38 minutes against the Blazers, above his season average, and dissected the defense with the midrange game and trademark footwork.
He shot just 2 of 10 from beyond the arc but went to the line 17 times.
“I’ve had games where I’ve made a lot of 2s and no 3s, and I’m pretty sure I had one game this year where I made all 3s and no 2s. It happens,” Brunson said. “Just all about keeping my confidence, not worrying, second-guessing, just playing through it. It’s always going to be a roller coaster. Just got to keep my mentality and mind straight. That’s the one thing I can control.”
Though Brunson’s restrictions were finished, Isaiah Hartenstein’s continued with just 23 minutes on Thursday. He hasn’t played more than 27 minutes in a game since returning from his last Achilles re-aggravation on Feb. 8.
“I don’t [know],” Thibodeau said of when Hartenstein’s minutes restriction will end. “He’s feeling a lot better as well, so that’s the positive. Obviously, getting OG has added a lot. So now Precious [Achuiwa] goes more to the backup 5. And then we still have Jericho [Sims]. So we feel good about that.”
Hartenstein said he was ramping up his minutes to feel 100 percent by the playoffs.
Despite over a decade of NBA experience, Bojan Bogdanovic’s transition to the Knicks hadn’t been smooth heading into Thursday against the Blazers.
He was shooting just 41 percent with a minus-16.3 net rating, as his bench unit struggled compared to recent dominating performances from the starters.
“We just have to be better, be more aggressive defensively and offensively,” Bogdanovic said, who scored five points in the win. “You gotta be ready, especially when Jalen is off the court. The second unit gotta know how to run different kinds of set plays because obviously he is not there. And then defensively, we gotta keep the standard up, playing defense no matter what’s going on offensively.”
Blazers center Deandre Ayton, who scored 31 points in the loss, went on a rant celebrating himself ahead of the matchup with the Knicks.
Ayton, who had just scored 33 points with 19 rebounds in Wednesday’s win over the Hawks, “thanked the haters,” called himself “dominant” and said “I’m wearing the cape” to carrying the Blazers “all the way.”
“I just be trying to bust that ass. That’s about it,” Ayton said. “Whether I look like the bad guy or not, I’m trying to be great. I’m trying to be a winner in this league. I’m trying to be known as that guy. If you’re around me, you’re going to learn how to win.”
It was quite a rant from a player who missed a game this season because he didn’t shovel his driveway after a snowstorm. Ayton was the only player who didn’t make it to the arena against the Nets in January.
Asked about facing Ayton, Knicks backup center Achiuwa said, “I just go out there and play basketball. I don’t care much about what people are saying and whatnot.”