Knicks Bulletin: ‘You guys read the tea leaves’

New York vs. Boston: Episode II – Revenge of the Knicks.

We’ve been waiting for this day since the first game of the season went down and ended in massive disappointment for the Knicks.

New York hosts the Leprechauns tonight the former will try to avenge the season-opening loss to Boston, thus evening the regular-season series and moving closer to the Cavaliers in the standings.

Here’s what we’ve heard from Coach Thibs and a few Knickerbockers ahead of Saturday’s Eastern Conference Finals preview.

Tom Thibodeau

On whether or not the lack of additions at the five through the deadline meant there is full confidence in Mitchell Robinson’s return and contributions:

“You guys can read the tea leaves. We like our team a lot.

“Obviously, we are excited about Mitch. But we also feel [rookie] Ariel [Hukporti] has done a good job, and Precious [Achiuwa] has done a good job. That’s really how we approached it.

“Leon [Rose] and his staff, they are on it all year long. I think there’s a tendency to think this happens a couple days before [deadline]. They are always looking if they can improve the club. If there’s something that makes sense, they explore it. Then, you go from there. But we like our team a lot.”

On the Delon Wright addition from Milwaukee:

“Just a good solid veteran. He’s been around. Gives us insurance at that position. Can guard multiple positions. So, we felt it was good for us.

“[Deflections have] been his strength. We like his size at the position, so we’ll just see how it goes. We have good quality depth there. It gives us a little more insurance.”

On Mitchell Robinson’s practice participation:

“He did quite a bit in practice and was moving well, but he still has not resumed 5-on-5 scrimmaging.”

On evaluating the team’s progress ahead of the deadline:

“I like our group a lot. They’ve worked extremely hard throughout the year from the start to where we are today. We still have a lot of work to do, but we think we can get better.”

On preparing for the Celtics rematch:

“It’s the next test. It’s about understanding how you prepare for each game—what are the strengths and weaknesses of the team? We have to know them well.

“Obviously, they’re a dangerous team. They are the defending champions. So we have to be ready to play 48 minutes of really good basketball.”

On what went wrong for the Knicks in the season-opening loss to Boston:

“The 3-point shooting was probably the difference in the game.”

On the challenge of developing team chemistry as the season grows older:

“I think the challenge is when you have as many guys as we did to get them to learn the strengths and weaknesses of each other, learning a new system and to focus on that improvement. I’d say offensively it’s been steady throughout. And defensively the same thing.

“To understand what goes into winning — defense, your rebounding, keeping your turnovers down, attacking the rim and sharing the ball. I’d say we’ve been pretty good at these things.”

On OG Anunoby’s injury status:

“Just take it day by day. Obviously, we’re hopeful he will be back, but if he’s not, next guy get in there and get the job done. We have good quality depth, but obviously OG is a huge part of our team.”

On the broader impact of trades in the life of NBA players:

“It shows you the popularity of the league and social media and everything. It’s great for the league and business. But you feel for the players that are involved. It’s not just them—it’s their families. There’s a lot going on.

“I personally preferred when the deadline was over [the All-Star] break.”

On the Cavaliers’ trade for De’Andre Hunter:

“They were a good team before. They are a good team now. I think players change teams, and then you have to understand who they are with their new players and how that changes them. So, we will deal with them when we play them.

“There are a lot of good teams in the league. The important thing for us is to focus on ourselves. [We have to focus on what we] have to do to prepare to play Boston tomorrow.”

Jalen Brunson

On the importance of the Celtics rematch:

“It’s another stepping stone for us to see where we are.

“Each game is a test for us to see where we can improve and get better. When a team wins [a title] the way they did, everyone’s chasing them. So there’s a lot of respect for Boston around the league.”

On Mitchell Robinson and Karl-Anthony Towns playing together:

“They have the potential to be very good. I just want Mitch to come back fully healthy and ready to go. That’s my main focus—just making sure he’s 100 percent.”

On the Knicks standing pat for the most part at the trade deadline:

“On trade deadline day, whoever wears New York across their chest is who we’re going with and who we’re trusting.

“Regardless of what happens, this is the team we’re going with, and I have the utmost respect and confidence in them. We’re ready to go.”

On his reunion with Delon Wright:

“He was a great teammate in Dallas, great to see him.”

On the Knicks roster outlook with the trade deadline in the rearview mirror:

“I’m more than happy.”

Karl-Anthony Towns

On treating every game with the same intensity:

“Obviously, you always want to get the best [playoff] position possible, but every game, you treat it as if they were Boston Celtics. I’ve said it before: If you treat any game like it’s not the Boston Celtics or the Cavaliers, then you’re doing yourself an injustice.

“We take every game seriously.”

On the Knicks’ growth since the start of the season and how can shape the second game against the Celtics:

“We’re a different team, just understanding each other, continuity, understanding where our strengths are. And we’re just a different mindset as a team as well.

“We have familiarity with each other. There’s been time with each other now to kind of cultivate a culture.”

On the forming a big lineup sharing the court with Mitchell Robinson:

“Just a tall lineup. It’s gonna be exciting to kind of explore that.

“I have some familiarity with it with Rudy [Gobert], so it’ll be something that I’ll tap into that kind of potential well.”

On Mitchell Robinson’s imminent return:

“Seeing Mitch is great. Being around him since I got here, it’s been awesome to be able to get to know him more on the friend side instead of just being his competitor. I respect him tremendously for what he does for this team. So it’s been great to be able to build a bond with him.”

On the Knicks’ mentality throughout the season:

“Our mentality has never changed. We always thought this was our team since Day One, when we started and we said what we wanted to accomplish this year. This has always been our team. We’ve always had tremendous faith that that’s what it was going to be moving forward.”