After losing back-to-back games at State Farm Arena, the New York Knicks face a 3-1 deficit ahead of Game Five against the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night.
They haven’t lived up to their 41-31 record from the regular season, and fourth-seed conference finish.
But if you ask anyone within the Knicks, from the front office to the players, they’ve still got a belief in their ability to turn things around at home on Wednesday and extend this series with a win.
It’s going to take some continued strong play from veterans Derrick Rose and Taj Gibson, who were promoted to the starting five for Games Three and Four in place of Elfrid Payton, and an injured Nerlens Noel.
But the aforementioned big man is still playing, just off the bench, and it’s inspired praise from his head coach.
Thibodeau Applauds Noel
As he’s dealing with an ankle issue, head coach Tom Thibodeau opted to bench Nerlens Noel along with Elfrid Payton when making his long-anticipated lineup change for Game Three.
It’s the role he was originally signed for, with Mitchell Robinson’s the team starter, before suffering an injury.
Noel spent his first 22 games coming off the bench for New York, and he was effective. But now hobbled with an ankle issue, he’s struggled, and didn’t even play 15 minutes for Game Four.
Still, after their loss in Game Four, Thibodeau was complimentary (via the New York Post) of the big man:
Right now we’re at the point where everything is on the table. And Nerlens is a warrior. He’s given us everything he has. We have great belief in him. He’s nicked up, but he’s out there fighting. The shot blocking, the rim protecting is critical. So give us what you have.
Noel scored just one point, on a free throw, and grabbed two rebounds in the 17-point loss on Sunday.
An Adjustment Too Late
Instead of playing third-string center Norvel Pelle, Tom Thibodeau opted to go small, playing Obi Toppin next to Julius Randle in the frontcourt, albeit at a point where the game was out of reach for the Knicks.
The results were somewhat promising, inspiring the idea that he may turn to that lineup quicker in Game Five.
Because, as he told the New York Post, whatever adjustments that are to be made, need to be made quickly:
We’ve got to fix it. We’ve got to fix it fast.
Of course, starting center Mitchell Robinson is watching from home, waiting to be cleared from a broken right foot.
But despite his cries on social media to be made active, New York is adamant that he’s nowhere close to a return.
It will be interesting to see how Thibodeau manages the center rotation in a win-or-go-home situation on Wednesday.
Because as admirable as it is, Nerlens Noel fighting through injury, he’s far below 100 percent, and frankly is hurting his team more than he’s helping them on the floor right now.
With their season on the line, can the New York Knicks pull off one more, seemingly larger-than-life feat?
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Head Coach Tom Thibodeau on Knicks’ Hobbled Center: ‘He’s a Warrior’