An ankle injury couldn’t stop Miles McBride’s motion.
The Knicks’ backup guard, known primarily as “Deuce,” suffered a left ankle sprain in early December against the Orlando Magic, but after three weeks on the shelf, McBride is back like he never left.
In his first game back, McBride logged 18 minutes against the New Orleans Pelicans, shooting 4-of-8 from the field and 2-of-5 from three. Two nights later, the 25-year-old guard turned it up another notch, pouring in 21 points in 26 minutes in Wednesday’s loss to the San Antonio Spurs on 7-of-12 shooting and 4-of-9 from deep.
For a Knicks team navigating a mounting injury list, the timing couldn’t be better.
As McBride works his way back into rhythm, New York has continued to miss Landry Shamet (shoulder sprain) and recently added both Josh Hart (ankle) and Mitchell Robinson (left ankle load management) to the inactive list. Robinson missed both the New Orleans and San Antonio games and was listed as questionable ahead of tipoff on Friday against the Atlanta Hawks.
Yet what could have become a strain on the rotation has instead been steadied by McBride’s seamless reintegration.
The two-way guard was already in the midst of a career year before the injury, thriving in Mike Brown’s up-tempo, space-and-pace system. If anything, his numbers coming back have only reinforced that trajectory. McBride is now averaging north of 12 points per game while shooting 44.2% from three on 6.3 attempts per night — all career highs.
Among players attempting at least six three-pointers per game, McBride ranks third in efficiency, trailing only Denver’s Jamal Murray and Milwaukee’s AJ Green. And his impact goes beyond shot-making: the Knicks outscore opponents by 13.1 points per 100 possessions with McBride on the floor, the best net rating on the roster.
The year-over-year jump is stark. In just 1.6 additional minutes per game, McBride is scoring 2.6 more points, shooting nearly 4% better from the field, 7% better from three, and 2.5% better from the free-throw line.
McBride is in the second year of a three-year, $13 million extension.
NEW LOOK KNICKS KIDS
Mohamed Diawara made back-to-back threes. Ariel Hukporti had six points, six rebounds, a block and a steal. Tyler Kolek was a plus-14 in 15 minutes with three points and six assists. And Kevin McCullar Jr. is seizing his moments as they arrive, too.
The Knicks may be navigating a rough stretch of injury, but their young players have answered the bell.
In their three games entering Friday vs. Atlanta, here’s how the new-look Knicks kids have fared:
- Diawara started two of his last three games and is averaging 9.7 points, 2.3 rebounds, 0.7 blocks and 0.7 steals on 58.3% shooting from three-point range, his biggest offensive question mark entering his rookie year. He averaged 13.3 minutes during this stretch, often playing heavy minutes early and watching from the sidelines late
- McCullar Jr. enjoyed his ‘Welcome to the Knicks’ moment in Atlanta: 13 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the field and 3-of-6 shooting from deep against the Hawks. The second-year forward, previously outside of the rotation, logged nine minutes in each of the following two games.
- Kolek’s role has diminished some with McBride’s return to the lineup, but he entered Friday with 11 combined assists over his past two games and three makes from deep on six total attempts. The second-year guard had already enjoyed his breakout, averaging 12 points and 6.6 assists on 42 percent three-point shooting from Dec. 15-26.
- And Hukporti, too, has had his moments showcasing his blend of speed, toughness and touch filling in as a backup center for Robinson, often sidelined due to his ankle.
BRUNSON BY THE NUMBERS
Jalen Brunson’s 29.4 points per game places him seventh in the NBA in scoring, ahead of Anthony Edwards (Minnesota), Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee) and Stephen Curry (Golden State) and trailing Jaylen Brown (Boston), Nikola Jokic (Denver), Donovan Mitchell (Cleveland), Tyrese Maxey (Philadelphia), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City) and Luka Doncic (Los Angeles).
Brunson is averaging 6.5 free throw attempts per game and making 5.5 of them, tying a career-best 84.7% foul line clip. Of the 20 players averaging 25 or more points per game this season, Brunson ranks 14th in attempts from the foul line with Doncic (11.8), Antetokounmpo (9.8), Portland’s Deni Avdija (9.6), Gilgeous-Alexander (9.0) and Los Angeles’ James Harden (8.7) comprising the top-three.
