The last time the New York Knicks and Oklahoma City Thunder squared off, Knicks coach Mike Brown had some things to say about Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander after the game.
“SGA, he’s a tough cover, and he does a great job of convincing the referees — probably better than anyone in the league — that he’s getting hit,” Brown said after Oklahoma City’s 103-100 win March 4.
Sunday, Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder take on the Knicks at home in a key game for both teams in the playoff race.
In that earlier meeting in New York, Brown was assessed a technical foul late in the first quarter after he felt Gilgeous-Alexander should’ve been called for a foul as Jalen Brunson defended him.
That would’ve been the third foul on Gilgeous-Alexander, who ultimately finished with 26 points and picked up just one more foul the rest of the way.
Sunday’s game is the second in a four-game road trip for the Knicks, who fell 114-103 in Charlotte on Thursday to snap a seven-game winning streak.
New York (48-26) comes into Sunday’s matchup 1.5 games behind Boston for the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference and two games ahead of Cleveland for the No. 3 spot.
Late in Thursday’s loss, Brown went with Mitchell Robinson on the floor instead of Karl-Anthony Towns.
“The guys are starting to trust me a lot more,” Robinson said. “They’re putting trust in me, so I’m telling them what I see and things that I think we can get better at. Being more vocal, it’s coming naturally.”
The Thunder (58-16) are coming off an 18-point win over Chicago on Friday, their 13th win in 14 games.
But Oklahoma City has needed to keep on a roll to try to hold off surging San Antonio for the No. 1 overall spot in the Western Conference.
Oklahoma City guard Jalen Williams has missed 45 games due to various injuries this season, but he is starting to find some sense of a rhythm three games after returning to the lineup from another extended absence.
Williams had 18 points, eight assists, and six rebounds in Friday’s win.
“That was nice getting back to how I usually play,” Williams said. “That was a good — a really big — step forward.”
As one of the primary ballhandlers alongside Gilgeous-Alexander, Williams’s progress affects the rest of the team offensively as well.
“They have to focus on him. When he’s being aggressive, getting downhill like that, it opens everything else up,” Isaiah Joe said.
Joe added: “He’s a hell of a player, and he’s getting his legs back, and he’s looking good.”
The Knicks have been without Landry Shamet for three games with a right knee injury, and though Shamet doesn’t appear close to returning, Miles McBride does appear to be nearing a return.
McBride hasn’t played since Jan. 27 due to a sports hernia but has recently returned to practice and could return as soon as Sunday.
Oklahoma City was without All-Star Chet Holmgren (right hip contusion) in Friday’s win.
