'I Love New York!' Bruce Brown Lauds Thibodeau, Entertains Idea of Knicks Trade
While RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley were warmly welcomed back to New York City on Saturday night, Bruce Brown's return was understandably buried.
Saturday marked Brown's second game with the Toronto Raptors, who fell by a 126-100 final to the New York Knicks in the first game since the teams' Dec. 30 negotiations that yielded OG Anunoby for the surging Manhattanites. Brown previously played for the Knicks cross-borough rivals, the Brooklyn Nets, for two seasons (2020-22) before joining Denver's championship cause last year.
“I love New York,” Brown said after scoring eight points off the bench, per Jared Schwartz of the New York Post. “I hated New York before I lived here, but as soon as I moved here I loved it. Anytime you want to do something you can go do it. Great restaurants, great city, I love being back.”
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The Miami alum and second-round choice from 2018 was working with the Indiana Pacers this season before he was sent north as the main piece of this week's Pascal Siakam deal. Toronto's ongoing rebuild could have him on the move again.
New York has kept tabs on Brown's recent nomadic affairs, inviting him in for a free agency visit over the summer before the Pacers paid out. He's now working with a Raptors group using this year's trade deadline activity to erode its 2019 championship memories and build for the future: Anunoby, of course, was dealt to the Knicks while Siakam was sent to Indianapolis.
In the aftermath of the Knicks' runaway victory over their former homegrown saviors, a blunt Brown appeared to entertain the idea of moving to Manhattan after a two-year tour of Brooklyn. While many have tried and failed to work themselves into head coach Tom Thibodeau's system, Brown believes he'd be a perfect fit in what the metropolitan boss is trying to build.
“I play extremely hard on both ends of the floor. I can do just about whatever (Thibodeau) needs me to do," Brown said in Schwartz's report. "I play extremely hard. I would think (I’m) the type of player that he likes. “Every time we play Thibs I go up to him and shake his hand, just because of what he’s done. (I have) nothing but respect for Thibs.”
Over six professional seasons, Brown has established himself as a strong defender and would be a strong spell option for Anunoby, who has revolutionized the Knicks' ability to keep teams off the scoreboard. While Brown likely wouldn't be the superstar the Knicks have long sought, he could immediately improve the team's title chances in the immediate future. Entering Sunday night play, the Knicks (26-17) sit in fifth place in the Eastern Conference, a game-and-a-half ahead of Indiana in the seventh spot.
Ironically enough, the Knicks face Brown's former employers on Tuesday night when they hit up Barclays Center hoping to cut down the Nets (7:30 p.m. ET, TNT).
