Knicks vs. Heat: What's Jalen Brunson's Status?
Just because the New York Knicks have proven they can win without Jalen Brunson doesn't mean they necessarily want to keep proving it ... especially at this time of the year.
Brunson's status for what's arguably the biggest game of the Knicks' 2022-23 season is officially up in the air as he's listed as questionable for a crucial visit from the Miami Heat on Wednesday night (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG). During the broadcast of the Knicks' Monday win over Houston, MSG Network's Mike Breen hinted that Brunson would likely be ready to go for the Heat's arrival, but he was also listed as questionable for the prior game before he was held out.
Ironically enough, a painful March for Brunson began in South Beach back on Mar. 3, when he briefly left a clutch New York victory with a foot injury. He has since missed the last two games with a sprained right hand sustained in the return trip to South Beach last Wednesday, a narrow 127-120 loss that brought a fair amount of intrigue to a rematch in Manhattan.
As it stands, the Knicks (43-33) still hold the fifth seed on the Eastern Conference playoff bracket but three consecutive losses last week allowed the seventh-place Heat (40-36) to keep their hopes of jumping into the East's automatic six playoff spots. New York could create a nearly-insurmountable advantage with a win on Wednesday, which would also give them the head-to-head tiebreaker (3-1).
The Knicks are 6-5 in Brunson-free efforts this season thanks primarily to fill-in efforts from Immanuel Quickley. A popular pick for NBA Sixth Man of the Year polls, Quickley has averaged 21.1 points in 17 starts replacing Brunsons this season. That includes a career-best outing on Monday night, when his 40 points served as the spark in a 137-115 win over the Houston Rockets.
Alas for the Knicks, there's been an undeniable next level in the lineup when Brunson plays and they'd certainly love to have him building a rhythm toward the postseason. In addition to their three-game lead over the Heat, the Knicks are also 2.5 games over the sixth-place Brooklyn Nets, who host the aforementioned Rockets on Wednesday night.
In addition to Brunson, fellow guard Derrick Rose has likewise been listed as questionable with an illness, which also kept him off the bench on Monday. Rose has not taken the floor for the Knicks since a blowout triumph over New Orleans on Feb. 25.
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
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