NEW YORK — It did not take Tyler Kolek very long time to mark the spirits of his captain and his coach.
Marquette’s freshman level guard earned the fast belief of Knicks“Captain Jalen Brunson and head coach Tom Thibodeau.
Kolek performed 16 minutes off the bench within the Knicks’ 116-94 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday evening, scoring a career-high 8 factors, 4 rebounds and a couple of assists. He was 2 of 4 from deep.
“I imply, I discuss to Tyler every single day,” Brunson mentioned in response to a query from NJ Advance Media. “I like Tyler. After which simply seeing him work onerous each likelihood he will get is one thing that makes me excited for his future. As a teammate, on and off the sphere, he’s the toughest employee and may have a protracted profession.
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The Knicks chosen Kolek, the previous Large East Participant of the 12 months, with the thirty fourth decide on this summer time’s NBA draft, and it might show to be one of many steals of the draft. Kolek, in fact, isn’t any stranger to taking part in on the Backyard after taking part in within the Large East.
The gritty, uncompromising guard purchased into Thibodeau’s system and instantly earned his belief as a backup to a different Large East product, Villanova’s Brunson.
“Each day he will get higher,” the coach mentioned. “He has an excellent sense of the sport and he’s a employee. He is studying the league and he’ll perceive increasingly what is going on on with defenses and in addition as he turns into extra conversant in the individuals he is guarding and the groups. I feel with every outing you possibly can see his confidence rising.
“We’ve a variety of confidence in him and I see it every single day. And often it begins in observe. Once you observe properly, you often play properly.
Former Knicks legend Walt “Clyde” Frazier additionally sang Kolek’s praises, praising his aggressive type and calling him a “precious greenhorn” on the group. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
“Tyler is an actual group participant, a pass-first guard who I actually like,” Frazier mentioned. “And he has an important mentor in Jalen Brunson.”
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Adam Zagoria is a contract reporter who covers Seton Corridor and NJ faculty basketball for NJ Advance Media. You may comply with him on Twitter @AdamZagoria and take a look at his web site at ZAGSBLOG.com.
