Time will tell if the New York Knicks have their second unit spark when they visit Jurassic Park.
Knicks head coach Mike Brown addressed the status of sixth man extraordinaire Miles McBride after the backcourt threat was forced to leave New York’s latest showing with an ankle injury. McBride stepped out during second half action of Sunday’s 106-100 win over the Orlando Magic and did not return, interrupting the depth star’s stretch of scintillating shooting.
“Deuce, I think he got an x-ray last night,” Brown reported in video from SNY. “I think he’s going to get an MRI today. But we’re still evaluating him.”
Kristian Winfield of the New York Daily News later reported that McBride would be labeled as questionable for the Knicks’ Tuesday night tilt against the Toronto Raptors (8:30 p.m. ET, MSG/Prime Video), which will be a part of NBA Cup quarterfinal action. Fellow insider Stefan Bondy of the New York Post had a slightly more pessimistic update, stating that McBride was adorned in a walking boot at the Knicks’ practice facility on Monday.
McBride’s shooting has kept the Knicks rolling despite losing OG Anunoby to an injury: in his prior seven games before Orlando’s visit, McBride was shooting 54% from the field, including just under 60% from three-point range. Forced back to the bench when Anunoby returned on Friday against Utah, McBride nonetheless impressed with a 7-of-10 output in the beatdown of the Jazz.
McBride was 1-of-7 from the field in the win over the Magic prior to his departure and left the game after a Desmond Bane foul sent him to the charity stripe. He would hit his awarded singles before departing for the locker room and did not return. Shortly after Brown spoke on Monday, franchise face Jalen Brunson was sure to pay tribute to McBride’s recent accomplishments.
“He’s been playing phenomenal,” Brunson lauded in video from SNY. “If [he’s out], then obviously we’re missing a huge piece of our team. But, healthy or not, Deuce has been remarkable this year, the way he’s been shooting, the way he’s been playing defense, everything he’s been doing for this team has impacted winning. He’s been playing. We’ll see how things go, but, obviously, we need him.”
In addition to McBride, the Knicks (16-7) are also dealing with the absence of Karl-Anthony Towns, who was a late scratch from Sunday’s game due to calf tightness. Brown said that Towns “went through his stuff today” but that the team is “still evaluating” his Tuesday status.

