Thibodeau 'Disappointed' But Optimistic After Knicks' Loss vs. Pacers

The New York Knicks couldn't recover from injuries in a loss against the Indiana Pacers.

Jeremy Brener | Feb 11, 2024

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New York Knicks

The New York Knicks were commonly labeled big winners at the NBA trade deadline. Now comes the hard part: justifying those marks on the floor.

Saturday marked the Knicks' first game with Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks in their lineup, but the Knicks remained in the loss column after falling to the Indiana Pacers by a 125-111 final at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks (33-20) have now lost consecutive games since late December and three of four since a nine-game winning streak ended last weekend against the Los Angeles Lakers.

Head coach Tom Thibodeau isn't pushing the panic button just yet.

"I'm disappointed in the result but I'm not disappointed in our team," Thibodeau said afterwards in video from SNY. "We've fought all year, we've responded to every challenge. I think we're capable of doing a lot better and I think we will."

Thibodeau also isn't using his team's health as an excuse: OG Anunoby and Julius Randle will be out for weeks while Saturday's game was also missing Isaiah Hartenstein, who aggravated an Achilles injury during Thursday's loss to Dallas, one that kept him out of two games in late January,

Given all the challenges the Knicks (33-20) are facing and the fact they're sitting relatively pretty in the Eastern Conference standings (fourth place, four games about the Play-In cutoff line), losing two games in a row is nowhere close to the end of the world. But New York will be tasked with figuring out how to build chemistry with a lot of players unfamiliar with one another before the playoffs. With all of the talent they have, it shouldn't be a tall task.

Time is probably the biggest enemy for the Knicks at the moment. Will they be able to accept the challenge of the adversity to be a contender for this season? Or will they have to wait a year before they can go star hunting in the summer and truly become a contender next season?

Pacers Pounce on Ailing Knicks Despite Brunson Return, Bogdanovic Debut

The sooner the better for the Knicks, but the jury is still out on whether or not this is their time.

New York is back in action on Monday against the Houston Rockets (8 p.m. ET, MSG).

Published Feb 11, 2024

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.