There wasn’t much to be optimistic about in the Knicks’ loss to the Pacers on Wednesday night, the team’s second straight flop against a seemingly inferior team.
But looking at the silver lining, in addition to RJ Barrett’s continued ascent, Nerlens Noel gave Tom Thibodeau productive minutes in his season debut, which was delayed due to a knee injury.
“For a first game, I thought he gave us some really good minutes,” Thibodeau said. “Good activity, rim protection, effort plays, a lot of good things.”
Noel played just under 18 minutes, coming off the bench and grabbing six rebounds, three on each end of the floor. He tallied just two points, but also recorded a block to pick up where he left off last season as a superb rim protector. Of all the Knicks that played at least 15 minutes on Wednesday night, Noel was the only one to finish with a positive plus/minus.
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With Noel back in the fold, Taj Gibson can have more rest on the bench and come in for shorter spurts, assuming Mitchell Robinson stays out of foul trouble. But having Noel back should be a big boost to New York’s frontcourt.
“It’s good to have him back,” Thibodeau said.
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