Knicks Send Miles McBride to G League Westchester Matinee, Return Imminent

The New York Knicks sent Miles McBride down to G League Westchester to get him some extra work after his exile from the NBA rotation.

Miles McBride is living up to his nickname of Deuce on Wednesday.

The New York Knicks sophomore was briefly sent to team's NBA G League squad repped by Westchester and partook in the developmental group's Wednesday morning matinee in Bridgeport, CT. McBride scored a team-best 28 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field as Westchester fell by a 147-126 final to the Delaware Blue Coats, a Philadelphia affiliate, during a "school day" event.

The Knicks (36-27) have already recalled both McBride and 2022 second-round pick Trevor Keels as they prepare to face the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday night (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG). They'll make an approximately two-hour drive from Total Mortgage Arena in Bridgeport to Madison Square Garden as crosstown rivals come to visit.

It’s only 11:30 AM and Miles McBride already has his head at the rim! 💥 @wcknicks pic.twitter.com/oFpKaTk91W

— NBA G League (@nbagleague) March 1, 2023

Working through his second year since arriving as a second-round pick out of West Virginia in 2021, McBride found a bit of niche role in Manhattan as a defensive specialist off the bench but has since fallen out of the New York rotation upon Josh Hart's arrival from Portland. The time in Westchester afforded him a chance to get some extra work in, as McBride played only 10 minutes of garbage time during New York's recent six-game winning streak. He previously played six games with last year's Westchester group, averaging 27.6 points. 

In his second season, McBride has averaged 3.3 points and 1.1 assists over 12.2 minutes a game. Even though he acknowledged that McBride was an odd man out in the latest edition of a nine-man New York rotation (the Knicks are 26-14 since enacting a nine-man set on Dec. 4), head coach Tom Thibodeau praised McBride's progress after the first win of the streak, a 126-120 home triumph over Utah on Feb. 11.

"It’s not easy. But that’s part of being a team and putting the team first,” Thibodeau said, per Mark W. Sanchez of the New York Post. “It’s not easy. But that’s part of being a team and putting the team first. I love Deuce, and I love the way he’s played.”

Westchester (8-14) is coached by NBA alum DeSagana Diop. In addition to McBride and Keels, they also had the services of newly-inked Duane Washington Jr., formerly of the Phoenix Suns. Washington had 21 points off the bench in his first game since signing a two-way deal on Tuesday. 

The G League Knicks return to action for another showdown against Delaware, headlined by Slam Dunk Contest Mac McClung, on Friday night (7 p.m. ET, NBAGLeague.com). 

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Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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