Report: Jalen Brunson's X-Rays on Ankle Negative After Injury in Knicks vs. Lakers
The New York Knicks may have avoided a worst-case scenario with Jalen Brunson after he left Thursday's 113-109 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in overtime after rolling his ankle.
Per NBA insider Chris Haynes, there's "optimism" that Brunson only sustained a sprained ankle and avoided a more serious injury.
SNY's Ian Begley later reported that Brunson's X-rays on his ankle came back negative and that the initial image "showed no broken bones."
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau didn't have an official update after the game, as Brunson was still being examined by the medical staff.
Josh Hart called the injury a "bummer" while adding they expect Brunson will "be out for a little bit."
The injury occurred late in the overtime period when Brunson's right ankle rolled when he landed awkwardly on a drive to the basket. He did stay in the game to make both of his free-throw attempts before going to the locker room.
Losing Brunson for any length of time is going to be a huge blow to a Knicks team that is still fighting for the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference.
New York is in a good spot to maintain that position with a three game lead in the loss column over the Milwaukee Bucks with 20 games remaining. Those two teams have one more head-to-head matchup in the regular season on March 28 in Milwaukee.
There's also an outside shot the Knicks could catch the Boston Celtics for the No. 2 spot. They are only four games back in the loss column, but Boston has the tiebreaker with a 3-0 record in three head-to-head meetings this season.
Another big concern for the Knicks is they already struggled against the best teams in the NBA with a healthy Brunson, so losing him will only make them more vulnerable. They are a combined 0-9 against the top two seeds in both conferences (Cleveland Cavaliers, Celtics, Oklahoma City Thunder and Lakers).
They still have a total of three games remaining against the Celtics and Cavs.
Brunson was having a brilliant game against the Lakers prior to the injury. He finished with 39 points and 10 assists in 41 minutes. The two-time All-Star is tied for seventh in the NBA in scoring average (26.3 points per game), ranks eighth in assists (7.4) and shoots 38.4 percent from three on 6.0 attempts per game.
If Brunson has to miss time, the Knicks will likely turn to Miles McBride as their starting point guard. He's having a solid season off the bench, averaging 9.2 points on 37.2 percent three-point shooting and 2.6 assists per game in 51 appearances.
