These Knicks never stop impressing with their fortitude and resiliency.
On their return to the Garden after a six-game, 11-day Western road trip, and with one of their top performers, Derrick Rose, out with a sprained ankle, the Knicks fell behind by 17 points to the Spurs during a third-quarter disaster Thursday.
But up to the plate stepped reserve swingman Alec Burks, who made his own return from a three-game absence with a knee bruise and COVID-19 to spark the Knicks to a raging 102-98 comeback victory.
Burks, who recently missed eight games with COVID-19, scored a season-high 30 points, and RJ Barrett got hot during the comeback, hitting six straight shots at one juncture to finish with 24 points after his eight-point dud in Los Angeles against the Lakers on Tuesday.
“It shows our grit and toughness,’’ Barrett said of the comeback. “We’re not going to back down.’’
“We never doubted we were going to win,’’ said Julius Randle, who finished with 25 points — 14 in the first quarter — to go along with nine rebounds and nine assists. “We were fine.”
With Elfrid Payton having another awful scoreless outing and rookie backup guard Immanuel Quickley also struggling, Burks shifted into a point-guard role in the second half to keep the Knicks’ hopes of a fourth seed in the East alive.
Burks made 11 of 20 shots — 5 of 10 from 3-point range. COVID-19 is now behind him.
In his first remarks since returning to the team, Burks said he had to stay in Dallas for 10 days after testing positive there but was asymptomatic. Burks said he received a vaccine shot only days before.
“I was isolated from the world,’’ said Burks, who had missed 11 of the previous 13 games. “You can say that. I had no symptoms. I think [my wind] is coming back.
“I was just trying to catch a rhythm. It’s been a whirlwind, just testing positive. I was stuck, then coming back and getting hurt on a fugazy play. It’s crazy.’’
Home-court advantage for the playoff’s first round is still in the offing, though, with two games left, the Knicks don’t control their own destiny.
With fourth-place Atlanta and Miami winning in routs Thursday, the Knicks stayed a half-game behind the Hawks and in a statistical tie for fifth with Miami. But the Heat own the tiebreaker.
If the season ended today, the sixth-seeded Knicks (39-31) would face the third-seeded Bucks. But there’s still two games to go.
Asked if he is scoreboard watching, Randle said, “Do you want the honest answer? For sure. People who say they’re not watching are lying. I was watching.’’
It was a brutal-shooting first half, but the Knicks got a much-needed lift from Burks. After a slow start during which one of his passes hit referee Zach Zarba, Burks pumped in 14 points in the second quarter, then shined in the fourth quarter when the Knicks pulled away.
“He’s had a lot of time to practice,’’ Tom Thibodeau said with a smile, adding, “It says a lot. I say that tongue and cheek. Going through COVID is not an easy thing, so that knocked him back. He was playing great prior to and to get nicked up when you come back. But he’s put a lot of time in the rehab, to get healthy again, to get his wind. He’s such a great pro. We have the right veterans.’’
The Knicks clinched a playoff berth Wednesday night with the Celtics losing in Cleveland and the players just arriving home from the West Coast.
“We all talked last night — after we clinched — we all got on the phone,’’ Randle said. “We all FaceTimed and talked. We enjoyed that moment. But we’re moving on. We can bask at the end of the season.’’
Legendary Spurs coach Gregg Popovich gave kudos to Thibodeau for breaking the Knicks’ seven-season playoff drought after snapping Minnesota’s 14-year playoff drought when he coached the Timberwolves. The two men hugged after the buzzer. Popovich, who coached with Thibodeau on the Team USA staff, claimed to be completely unsurprised.
“Those of who know him were laughing with huge respect,’’ Popovich said. “You knew it was going to happen. He was going to grab that group and challenge them and hold them accountable. It just makes you smile because you knew it was going to happen. Like night comes after day. He went and did it again. We’re thrilled for him. He’s made it a winning culture. He’s been awesome.”
