On another night when Nerlens Noel’s season debut was pushed off, the Knicks’ depth at center got even thinner.
Taj Gibson sprained his left ankle in the first half and did not return in the Knicks’ 113-104 loss to the Raptors on Monday night at the Garden.
Coach Tom Thibodeau said after the game he did not yet have a sense of the severity of Gibson’s injury, but it was enough to knock him out after playing 10 minutes before halftime.
Gibson’s injury forced rookie Jericho Sims into action for a stretch of five-plus minutes from late in the third quarter to early in the fourth while giving Mitchell Robinson a rest. Sims recorded a rebound, a turnover and a foul in his third career game.
Thibodeau had called Noel a “game-time” decision, but after warming up, he was ultimately ruled out for a seventh straight game with the knee/hamstring issue that has lingered since the preseason.
“He warmed up and felt he needed another day,” Thibodeau said. “So we’ll see where he is tomorrow.”
The “Bing Bong” phenomenon made its way inside the Garden on Monday night — at least before the Knicks blew a 15-point lead.
The phrase that gained notoriety from a social media video taken outside the Garden after the Knicks’ season-opening win over the Celtics was played over the loudspeaker after an Evan Fournier 3-pointer in the first quarter and then following an Obi Toppin alley-oop in the second.
Playing for a coach who demands the most out of his players — and heavy minutes for some — RJ Barrett recently called being in shape a “non-negotiable” under Thibodeau.
The Knicks coach said Monday that it takes a year-round commitment from his team.
“We want our whole team in great shape, so we prioritize that,” Thibodeau said. “When you have guys that are gym rats, they’re going to put the work in. there’s no prodding that’s going on. It’s their pride, their professionalism, attitude, approach, work capacity. They know [that] to win games late, you have to be in great shape.”
Monday marked the 75th anniversary of the first game in league history, in which the Knicks beat the Toronto Huskies 68-66.
“Hey, pretty cool rematch, I think we owe them one,” Raptors coach Nick Nurse said before the game.