Knicks' Jalen Brunson doing 'light shooting' while rehabbing injured ankle
Knicks guard Jalen Brunson writhes in pain after getting injured during the second half of an NBA game against the Los Angeles Lakers on March 13 in Los Angeles. Credit: AP/Mark J. Terrill
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Two weeks after Jalen Brunson suffered a sprained right ankle in Los Angeles, Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau gave an update that provided optimism that Brunson will be back ahead of the postseason.
Brunson left the Knicks’ March 6 loss to the Lakers in the final minute of overtime when he suffered the injury, remaining on the floor to hit a pair of free throws before limping to the locker room. He headed home two days later to focus on his rehabilitation while the team continued on the road.
“The only thing I’d say is he’s doing light shooting,” Thibodeau said Thursday. “He’s out of the boot. So steady progress. See where it goes from there.”
Entering Thursday’s game against the Hornets, the Knicks were 3-3 without Brunson. Although they are nearly locked into the third seed in the Eastern Conference, there still is hope of getting Brunson back before the postseason to get game action.
“Whenever he’s ready, he’s ready,” Thibodeau said. “He’s putting a lot into his rehab, so right now that’s where we want his focus to be. And then, hopefully, he’ll get into some games where he works his way back into it.”
It would be secondary to his overall health, but Brunson does need to play four more games to qualify for postseason awards. All 61 of his games played met the 20-minute criteria, so he needs four of those, and in the Knicks’ final six games, there are two sets of back-to-back games. If he were to sit out one of each back-to-back set, he would need to return by April 6 at home against Phoenix.
Notes & quotes: Mitchell Robinson (ankle) was held out Thursday on the second night of the back-to-back set as he continues through injury recovery protocols . . . With his first deal expiring at 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, P.J. Tucker, who made his Knicks debut in the final minutes Wednesday, was signed to a second 10-day contract.
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
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