The Knicks had a chance to clinch their first playoff series at home since 1999 on Tuesday night, but lost Game 5 to the Pistons and will now play Game 6 on Thursday in Detroit.
Jalen Brunson (ankle) and Josh Hart (wrist) both dealt with minor bumps throughout the hard-fought game, but made it clear they will be OK for the crucial matchup less than 48 hours away.
Brunson, who missed four weeks with an ankle injury in March, appeared to slip on the Garden floor late in the fourth quarter and had to briefly exit the game. It’s become a bit of a common theme for Brunson to suffer some type of leg or ankle injury during the first-round series, but he’s always found a way to return to action.
Luckily, the star guard said after the loss that his ankle is “all good” and he’s feeling “fine.”
Hart suffered a hard fall on his wrist and had to leave the court with trainers before eventually returning alongside Brunson with 27.1 seconds left in the fourth quarter and down six points.
“Just needed to regroup, walk it off, and try to go back in,” Hart said.
“My whole body’s bothering me,” he added when asked what wrist was the problem.
Hart finished the night with 15 points, seven rebounds, six assists, two steals, and two blocks over 36 minutes, while Brunson had his lowest scoring playoff game this year with just 16 points on 25 percent shooting.
Despite both being banged up, the college teammates will look to lead Knicks to victory on Thursday night and advance to the Eastern Conference Semifinals for the third consecutive season.
“We’ve got to go out there and win the game,” Hart said. “We’ve got to go out there and compete. We’ve got to go out there and be physical. Not worry about foul calls, or refs, or anything like that. We’ve got to make sure we can control what we can control.”
The Knicks had a chance to clinch their first playoff series at home since 1999 on Tuesday night, but lost Game 5 to the Pistons and will now play Game 6 on Thursday in Detroit.
Jalen Brunson (ankle) and Josh Hart (wrist) both dealt with minor bumps throughout the hard-fought game, but made it clear they will be OK for the crucial matchup less than 48 hours away.
Brunson, who missed four weeks with an ankle injury in March, appeared to slip on the Garden floor late in the fourth quarter and had to briefly exit the game. It’s become a bit of a common theme for Brunson to suffer some type of leg or ankle injury during the first-round series, but he’s always found a way to return to action.
Luckily, the star guard said after the loss that his ankle is “all good” and he’s feeling “fine.”
Hart suffered a hard fall on his wrist and had to leave the court with trainers before eventually returning alongside Brunson with 27.1 seconds left in the fourth quarter and down six points.
“Just needed to regroup, walk it off, and try to go back in,” Hart said.
“My whole body’s bothering me,” he added when asked what wrist was the problem.
Hart finished the night with 15 points, seven rebounds, six assists, two steals, and two blocks over 36 minutes, while Brunson had his lowest scoring playoff game this year with just 16 points on 25 percent shooting.
Despite both being banged up, the college teammates will look to lead Knicks to victory on Thursday night and advance to the Eastern Conference Semifinals for the third consecutive season.
“We’ve got to go out there and win the game,” Hart said. “We’ve got to go out there and compete. We’ve got to go out there and be physical. Not worry about foul calls, or refs, or anything like that. We’ve got to make sure we can control what we can control.”
