Towns sidelined with knee soreness as Knicks face decimated Orlando

It would be hard for the Orlando Magic to muster much sympathy for the Knicks with the news shortly before game time Monday that New York would be without Karl-Anthony Towns, sitting out with right knee patellar tendinopathy.

It was just the third game of being on the sideline for Towns this season. It must have sounded like a dream to Magic coach Jamahl Mosley, who has been without much of his top tier talent this season. That was true again Monday as the team was without Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner, Mo Wagner, Jalen Suggs and Gary Harris.

But for the Knicks this has not been an issue this season, the starters rarely getting a night off even as the bumps and bruises of the NBA season have hit them just like other teams. Jalen Brunson was listed as probable Monday and was in the starting lineup. But he played through right calf tightness that forced him to sit one game last week. Deuce McBride was out for a fourth straight game with a hamstring strain.

But the Knicks have managed to keep their starting five on the floor, entering Monday with all five starters among the top 15 in total minutes played — MIkal Bridges, Josh Hart and OG Anunoby lined up in the top three spots, Brunson seventh and Towns 15th.

While critics outside the organization have pointed to the minutes and criticized Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau the reality is that the team has managed to avoid the major injuries that have afflicted other teams and many star players. The Knicks have cut down on the court time outside of games, limiting practices and even cutting back on morning shootarounds.

And even after taking a shot late in the game Saturday in Chicago to his knee that had him limping off the court, Towns went through a long workout in the weight room, not finishing up until the rest of the team was already out of the arena.

“The more time you go through it, you understand how important that is,” Thibodeau said. “To continue throughout the course of the season you’re building up to go a long period of time. You condition your body to what you want to do . And the players that are serious about their craft make that commitment and understanding how important that is.

“Early on, until a player goes through it, he doesn’t fully understand what an NBA schedule looks like. I think that’s why you see the commitment players make in the offseason where they stay in great shape so they can endure a long season.”

“It’s all preseason diet, preseason working, your workouts, your lifting and the will to win,” Towns said recently.

With Orlando so beaten up it made sense for Towns not to push himself, but he insists that if he can play he will never opt to sit. Even when he got fouled in the final minutes Saturday, taking a knee from Nikola Vucevic to his leg, he wanted to remain on the floor.

“I ain’t going to quit,” Towns said. “That’s not my MO. I want to keep going. I looked at Jericho Sims, he pointed at me, I pointed at him, and said let’s go. I wasn’t going to quit. I don’t care how I feel. I’m not going to quit on my teammates.”

With the Knicks opting to hold him out, Sims got the start Monday. And as Thibodeau has maintained a next-man up mentality, Mosley is doing the same with Orlando. This was the Knicks fourth meeting with the Magic and it has been bizarre to follow game by game. Banchero has missed all four games. Franz Wagner had 30 points against New York in the first meeting and then went out with a major injury. Mo Wagner had 32 points in the second game against New York and then went out with a season-ending injury. Jalen Suggs led Orlando with 27 points in the third matchup and then had to be wheeled off the floor last week with back spasms.

So for Mosley, it’s next man up.

“It’s a long season,” Mosley said. “Guys understand the preparation you do in the summer is to possibly get an opportunity. Our coaches do a tremendous job of focusing in on game plan. Getting these guys prepared for whatever moment happens. And we’ve seen it all for the most part. Credit to the coaches. Credit to these guys for staying ready and waiting for their opportunity as well as focusing on the defensive end of the floor, knowing what we have to do each and every night to give ourselves a chance.”