Reddish, Rose Sit For Knicks; What's Blooming?
It wouldn't be New York Knicks basketball without a pinch of controversy, now would it?
Perhaps nothing has defined the early stages of the Knicks' season better than Sunday's ugly 92-81 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, one that saw the sides unite for 37 turnovers while posting a 1990s-esque score. New York, however, likely doesn't care about the particulars, instead able to gain relative peace to the tune of earning both its first win at Madison Square Garden since Nov. 11 and its first triumph over an opponent with a winning record since Nov. 16.
Notably absent from the victory, however, were both Cam Reddish and Derrick Rose, each of whom had the dreaded "DNP-CD" initials in their Sunday box scores. Though both Reddish and Rose have briefly dealt with medically-induced absences this season, Sunday marked the first time they were de facto healthy scratches.
Making Reddish and Rose's respective departures all the more questionable was the fact that the Knicks (11-13) were in the second half of a weekend back-to-back at MSG, having fallen to Dallas on Saturday. Yet, they kept two of their rotation regulars nailed to the bench. Miles McBride, back from a brief stint with G League Westchester, took over their minutes in relieving RJ Barrett, Jalen Brunson, and Quentin Grimes, playing a season-high 16 minutes.
Neither Reddish nor Rose spoke during the aftermath and head coach Tom Thibodeau offered little clarity in his own statements. Per SNY, Thibodeau kept the 34-year-old Rose out, in fact, because of the back-to-back while Reddish's banishment was a "coach's decision," namely one where he was enjoying the team's rhythm with a nine-main rotation.
"I wanted to get it to a nine-man rotation," Thibodeau declared. "It worked a lot better."
Thibodeau's desire for a nine-man rotation is far from unheard of: he previously employed such a strategy during the Knicks' five-game road trip out west last month, one that yielded a 3-2 record. That set-up employed the services of Jericho Sims while Mitchell Robinson recovered from a knee injury and also led to Evan Fournier's ongoing exile: both likewise shared the bench with Reddish and Rose on Sunday.
Reddish and Rose were apparent casualties of Thibodeau's process of figuring out which nine men should indeed take the floor for the Knicks on a nightly basis. Whether either plays his way in there, Thibodeau hinted, will rely primarily on the in-game situations.
“The tough thing is you’ve got to make a decision. Who are the nine? There (are) guys who are deserving to be in there,” Thibodeau said. “You’re trying to stretch it a little bit until there’s more clarity to it and once there is and you have more information, now you’ve got to make the decision.
“We’re always going to do what we think is best for the team. So I want to prioritize that. And that doesn’t mean it’s permanent. It just means that’s where we are right now. Whatever gives us the best chance to win, that’s what we’re going to do.”
While the trade deadline is much further down the road, the possibility of a deal should not be ruled out. Both Reddish and Rose were the subjects of speculation during the offseason and the latter has reportedly drawn further interest since tip-off. The team opted not to extend Reddish's rookie contract which came over from Atlanta which makes him prime trade bait for the coming movement period.
Prior to this latest lineup adjustment, Reddish (who played only nine minutes on Saturday) was establishing himself as a strong defender and even worked his way into the starting lineup during the aforementioned western swing. Any New York deal, however, perhaps feels like it's being held back by the current state of the franchise, one where lofty goals of contention are being held back by lingering mediocrity. Entering play this week, the Knicks hold the final spot in the Eastern Conference Play-In Tournament, holding a tiebreaker with the Washington Wizards.
The Knicks return to action on Wednesday night against Reddish's former compatriots from Atlanta (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG/ESPN).
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
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