As COVID continues sweeping through North American professional sports, the New York Knicks saw yet another one of their players, rookie guard Quentin Grimes, enter NBA health and safety protocols on Tuesday.
The 21-year-old first-round pick was coming off his first big performance as a pro, setting a Knicks rookie franchise record in points (27) during his first-ever start and three-pointers made (seven).
He was the lone bright spot of a Sunday afternoon beatdown at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks, which only continued a miserable Knicks slide that has seen them go 7-14 over their last 21 games — erasing a promising 5-1 start to the season.
He joins RJ Barrett and Obi Toppin on the Knicks’ COVID list — as the roster squeeze only seems to get tighter for head coach Tom Thibodeau.
Alec Burks is back with the Knicks after missing Sunday’s game due to the birth of his child, which was another reason why Grimes was given the starting nod in the first place.
Burks will share the backcourt responsibilities with Derrick Rose and Immanuel Quickley while veteran point guard Kemba Walker continues to stay out of Thibodeau’s playing rotation. Heading into Tuesday night’s game against the Golden State Warriors, Walker had been held out of the previous eight games.