Tyler Kolek having an impact as Knicks' backup point guard
Knicks guard Tyler Kolek dribbles the ball past Boston Celtics guard Anfernee Simons in the first half of an NBA game at Madison Square Garden on Friday. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
GREENBURGH — Tyler Kolek’s most notable achievement last season as a rookie came when he pulled off a rare same-day doubleheader, scoring 36 points for the Westchester Knicks on the afternoon of Jan. 2 before joining the NBA Knicks that night at Madison Square Garden, where he had two points and four assists in 12 minutes.
This season, the 24-year-old likely won’t have a chance to achieve the same trick. New Knicks coach Mike Brown has used him as the team’s backup point guard, filling the role vacated by Malcolm Brogdon’s sudden retirement days before the start of the regular season.
Kolek has been doing his best to take advantage of the opportunity. In Wednesday’s season-opening win over Cleveland, he played 14 minutes, scoring seven points and adding two assists in relief of starter Jalen Brunson. In Friday’s victory over Boston, Kolek had two points and four assists in 13 minutes.
“He has versatility, toughness on both ends of the floor,” Brown said. “He can [make plays] for himself and others. Gets us organized.
“He had a really good game defensively [Friday] night for the most part, and then during the first stretch, he was really good offensively. In the second half, he wasn’t as good. But he’s a young guy and he’s going to learn and grow from any minutes that he gets. And that’s what I like about him, because you know he’s young, he’s smart, but more importantly, he’s tough-minded. So he can take any type of coaching or any adversity that he goes through at any time and he’ll bounce back the right way.”
Kolek, the 34th overall pick in the 2024 draft, was considered a project and played in only 41 games as a rookie last season. The good thing about that, he said, is that he got to spend plenty of time on the bench watching and observing. Kolek credited former Knicks backup point guard Cam Payne with helping him see what he had to do to contribute to the team.
“Cam Payne actually taught me something. Coming into the game, you want to change it in some way,” Kolek said. “You want to change the speed of the game or get the ball moving a little bit more. You’re there and you have the whole first quarter or seven or eight minutes to really watch and dissect what the other team is doing and what we’re doing as well on offense and defense. I just want to come in and impact the game any way I can.”
The Knicks are a team with championship aspirations, so they still might bring in a more experienced backup for Brunson. For now, Kolek is making the best of the opportunity he has under a coach who likes to go deep into his bench.
“Just taking it day by day,” Kolek said. “For me, it is just come into the gym and work hard and show what I can do.”
Barbara Barker is an award-winning columnist and features writer in the sports department at Newsday. She has covered sports in New York for more than 20 years.
