INDIANAPOLIS — Tom Thibodeau believes he has a solution for RJ Barrett’s chronic slow starts.
“He’s staying with me next summer, so he’ll be good,” the Knicks coach joked.
Thibodeau and the Knicks can laugh about it now, because Barrett looks to have turned a corner after a difficult first month this season. He has been a big part of the Knicks’ recent turnaround, averaging 21.1 points on 39.7 percent 3-point shooting along with 6.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists over his last 12 games, eight of them Knicks wins. Compare that to his numbers before this stretch: 25.2 percent from distance, 18.5 points and 4.9 rebounds.
Barrett doesn’t have an explanation for why he starts seasons so slowly. He dismissed the idea there has been extra pressure because of the four-year, $107 million contract extension he signed in the offseason and insisted he doesn’t do anything different during the early part of a season compared to later in the schedule. Due to the ongoing contract talks, Barrett didn’t play with Team Canada during the summer, but he didn’t use that as an excuse.
RJ Barrett looks to be breaking out of his early-season slump. AP
“At the end of the day you’ve got to play basketball, man,” he said. “I was still working out.”
During his lowest point, when he went through a brutal stretch in November, Barrett didn’t let it affect him outwardly. He spoke confidently that it would eventually turn and encouraged teams to play off of him, because he would make them pay down the road.
“He doesn’t get rattled, he keeps forging ahead,” Thibodeau said. “So it’s a good mindset to have. I think he’ll get there. The more times he goes through it, he’ll rev the engine up and be ready to go.”
As for Thibodeau’s idea, Barrett shot that down in a playful manner.
“We [would] be watching film all day long [if that happened],” he said.
The Knicks’ six-game winning streak is the longest in the NBA. They also own the second-best road winning percentage (.600) in the entire league behind the Celtics. The surprising Pacers (15-15) will be a test, particularly at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, where they are 9-6.
