CHICAGO — For the first time in a long time, the Knicks are nearly whole again.
Sixth man Miles McBride rejoined the team for practice at DePaul University’s Sullivan Athletic Center on Thursday after missing two games — losses in both Milwaukee and Miami — to attend to a death in the family. Mitchell Robinson was a full participant, too, for the first time since the team began load-managing his twice surgically repaired left ankle after an Oct. 9 preseason game against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Robinson will be a game-time decision Friday in Chicago, and McBride is expected to play — meaning, at long last, the Knicks could finally see what they look like at full strength.
“Obviously we may have guys back and we’re starting to get guys back in game shape and in rhythm,” team captain Jalen Brunson said after practice on Thursday. “It’s great obviously to have everyone back because being at full strength, we can see where we are.
“There’s no excuse of who’s not here. It’s either we’re good enough or we’re not.”
It’s about time — because the Knicks have been working with two built-in disclaimers.
The first: Friday marks just Game 5 for a group still learning Mike Brown’s up-tempo, read-and-react offense. The stylistic shift from Tom Thibodeau’s methodical approach was always going to take time. The Knicks have granted themselves room to make mistakes while adjusting.
The second: They’ve been short-handed. Robinson missed most of training camp and the preseason. McBride, their defensive spark and secondary playmaker, was unavailable during the team’s recent road skid. Their absences made it difficult to gauge how this roster truly fits together — especially given Robinson’s dominance on the glass, his rim protection, and vertical gravity in the pick-and-roll, along with McBride’s blend of offensive spark and hounding, point-of-attack defense off the bench.
“I think we’ve been pretty good defensively for some quarters and parts of the game. We haven’t played a full 48 minutes of offense or defense,” said Brunson. “[Mitch] brings an extra layer of stability on the back line of the defense, so you can’t really — what he does is immeasurable.”
The Knicks enter Friday’s matchup at 2–2 — a record that reflects their uneven start. There have been flashes of what Brown’s system can look like at full throttle, but also stretches of inconsistency. With McBride back and Robinson possibly returning, Brown will finally have his full rotation available for the first time.
“It’ll take some time. It’s hard to get a true evaluation the first five to 10 games,” Brown said after practice on Thursday. “The first month or month-and-a-half, everybody feels like they have a chance [to win it all], and guys are playing hard and engaged and sometimes you have teams that are on top. They’re not going to finish on top because teams are trying to find their way.
“Come about December or end of November, we should have a pretty good feel.”
That is, of course, if the Knicks can stay healthy.
Karl-Anthony Towns is playing through a quad strain. Brunson had two injury scares on the same possession in Milwaukee. Josh Hart is managing lower back spasms and a splint on his right ring finger. And Robinson, while progressing, is going to be load-managed throughout the season, likely sitting out one leg of most back-to-backs.
“You never know what the situation’s gonna be,” Brunson said. “Guys are gonna be in and out of the rotation. Having that next-man-up mentality is something we have to live by regardless of the situation.”
In an ideal world, the Knicks can stay whole for when it matters most — in April, when teams with championship ambitions begin gearing up for a deep playoff run. That’s still a long way off — 78 games, to be exact — and there’s plenty of work ahead as Brown continues to add layers to both sides of the ball, though the emphasis after their two road losses was maintaining their style of play for a full 48 minutes.
:Keeping our foot on the gas, finishing strong,” said Brunson. “We’re starting great and not finishing strong, and that’s gonna be big for us especially against a [Bulls] team that’s hot.”
For now, though, Brown might finally get to see how all the pieces fit together — especially with Robinson. The veteran center has built a reputation for erasing teammates’ mistakes with elite rim protection, though Brown doesn’t expect him to look like his full self right away.
“Mitch brings a lot to the table. Obviously he hasn’t played in a while, so he’s not going to be Mitch Robinson in the next five games probably, no matter when he plays or how much he plays,” Brown said. “But his length, his versatility — being able to guard one through five — his ability to offensive rebound, defensive rebound, he just brings a lot to both ends of the floor. You get a vertical threat offensively and an anchor defensively.
“That’s hard to replace. He’s a special player at that position.”
A limited version of Robinson is still better than none at all. And with the Knicks finally welcoming him back into the fold, they’ll at last get a real look at how Brown’s new system fits when every piece is finally in place.
