Knicks Bulletin: ‘God’s blessed him with talent and longevity’

New York hoops are back with a very saucy matchup against the stubborn Rockets.

No hoops on Sunday for the New York Knicks, who were still recovering from the aftermath of 1) the loss to the Lakers and 2) the trade by the Lakers.

The boys will be back on the court later today facing an actual contender from the Western Conference as No. 3 seed Houston arrives in NYC to try and sweep the regular-season series against the Knicks.

Here’s the latest we’ve heard from Coach Thibs, a few Knickerbockers, and someone named Nico.

Tom Thibodeau

On Mitchell Robinson’s rehab progress:

“Everything has gone very smoothly in terms of the rehab. So the next step will be the clearance for regular contact. The controlled contact, you know what’s coming. So you can brace yourself for it.

“So once you get out of that, where you’re just playing and reacting, that will be the next step. He’s pretty close.”

On the Lakers’ defensive approach against Towns:

“They were swarming, and when they went small, they were doubling KAT.

“We gotta make shots when you’re getting double-teamed.”

Jalen Brunson

On OG Anunoby’s injury:

“Obviously, he’s a huge part of our team. It’s always tough to see something like that, especially a teammate and somebody that means a lot to you and your team.

“So we’re praying for him and just [will] wait and see what we hear. Obviously, we are praying for the best.

On the Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis trade:

“April fools right?”

Josh Hart

On OG Anunoby’s injury:

“Whenever someone goes down, we know it’s a part of the game, but obviously there’s a humane aspect to it.

“So obviously, we hope he’s good, and that’s always tough, that’s always tough seeing one of your guys go down, especially the way he’s been playing all season—especially the last four or five games.”

On the Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis trade:

“Huh?????”

Karl-Anthony Towns

On OG Anunoby’s injury:

“It’s obviously scary. You care so much for these guys, and we care so much for each other, you never want to see that happen to one of your brothers.

“So it’s obviously not something you want to see. I’m not talking about [what was said], I’m just trying to make sure he’s in good spirits and everything is going well.

“We’ll take it day by day and see what happens and see by Monday what we’re looking at.”

On his shooting struggles and dealing with his thumb injury:

“Just didn’t shoot well (on Saturday). I got my opportunities. Last game [against the Nuggets], I didn’t shoot well from 3, and I haven’t been shooting well from 3, but I got more than enough talent excluding my shot to make something happen. I just didn’t do it today.

“It’s tough, but keep your head up, move on and get ready for the next one.”

On LeBron James’ triple-double at age 40:

“He’s LeBron, so I don’t expect anything less.

“Obviously, God’s blessed him with the talent and longevity to keep doing what he does at this age.”

LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers Player)

On watching his son Bronny play in the NBA:

“I missed a lot of Bronny’s points because of my career, over the course of his childhood and AAU and high school.

“To see all the buckets he had as an NBA player is pretty special. It’s probably the greatest thing I’ve ever been a part of.”

On Bronny splitting reps between the G League and the NBA:

“It’s great to get some NBA experience. He’ll continue to develop and go back and forth with the G [League]. It’s all about the process. He doesn’t mind it. Any moment he can have in his career that I’m here is pretty special.”

On playing at Madison Square Garden once again:

“The fans here have always treated me with respect and I always try to give it back to them. I understand the history of this building. I’ve been a part of Madison Square Garden for 20-plus years.

“It’s great to get a good quality win against a great team. The Knicks are a great team.”

On helping OG Anunoby after his injury:

“I thought he was hurt, so I tried to help him. I know he went down with an injury.

“It’s still a brotherhood in this league. I’m hoping he’s doing OK.”

Ian Begley (SNY Analyst)

On OG Anunoby’s potential absence:

“You can’t really overstate how big of a loss OG Anunoby would be if he has to miss time, whether it’s several games or weeks or whatever it turns out to be.

“Tom Thibodeau said that Anunoby had hurt his foot late in the first half and then obviously comes out and plays in the third quarter and does what he does. So, yeah, big concern.

“There were some long faces in that locker room. I don’t want to speculate too much, but when Jalen Brunson says, ‘We know as much as you guys,’ and, ‘We’re just praying that we hear good news,’ it leads you to believe that there’s reason to be concerned at the moment for Anunoby.

“I would assume that he goes out and gets an MRI to get this thing further looked at.”

Nico Harrison (Dallas Mavericks President)

On the Mavericks building a culture around trading top-3 NBA players:

“I understand the magnitude. It’s important to know that (Dallas coach Jason) Kidd and I are aligned and we talk about archetypes and we talk about the culture we want to create.

“There are levels to it, and there are people that fit the culture and there’s people that come in and add to the culture. Those are two distinct things and I believe the people that are coming in are adding to the culture.”