Tyler

Kolek

Kolek played 27 minutes in the loss to the Pistons. The 24-year-old point guard had 10 points on 11 shots, missed all five of his three-point attempts and had five turnovers despite his eight assists. Kolek is behind Miles McBride and Jordan Clarkson as backup point guards for the Knicks, but he’s a solid depth player as he showed at times last season.

Payne will be back after a four-game absence, but he won’t return to the starting unit. He’ll play the backup point guard minutes behind Delon Wright, which will likely push rookie Tyler Kolek out of the rotation. With Jalen Brunson set to return on Sunday, Wright will only have one more game of streaming appeal.

Payne has missed New York’s last four games with a sprained ankle. With Jalen Brunson and Miles McBride also out, Delon Wright and Tyler Kolek have handled the point guard responsibilities. If Payne and Brunson are available on Saturday, there won’t be much to gain from rostering Wright or Kolek in most leagues.

Brunson hasn’t played in nearly a month, and Deuce has missed seven straight. If one or both are able to take the court on Saturday, Delon Wright and Tyler Kolek could see their minutes reduced. The same is true of Cam Payne, who has missed four straight but returned to practice on Friday alongside Brunson and McBride.

Brunson has missed New York’s last 14 games with a sprained right ankle. Cleared to resume basketball activities on Sunday, the All-Star point guard will practice on Friday. The Knicks are hopeful that Brunson can play over the weekend, with the team visiting Atlanta on Saturday and hosting Phoenix the following day. Delon Wright and Tyler Kolek have handled the point guard responsibilities recently, but both will fall out of the rotation once Brunson, Miles McBride (groin) and Cameron Payne (ankle) return.

The Knicks will end this week with a Saturday/Sunday back-to-back, visiting Atlanta before returning home to host the Suns. And the team’s point guard rotation may be back to normal. In addition to Jalen Brunson potentially returning from his ankle injury, McBride and Payne “should” be cleared any day, according to their head coach. McBride has missed New York’s last seven games and Payne the last four. How much McBride or Payne would impact fantasy basketball during the final days of Week 22 depends on Brunson’s availability. However, with the schedule being what it is, there isn’t anything to gain from holding onto Delon Wright or Tyler Kolek if you’ve been streaming them.

The Knicks are on the road for two games: Wednesday in Cleveland and Saturday in Atlanta. Brunson might return to game action sometime next week, and traveling with the team represents progress. With Miles McBride (groin) and Cameron Payne (ankle) closing in on a return to action, the Knicks’ point guard rotation may return to full strength in the very near future. Delon Wright and Tyler Kolek will continue to handle the point guard responsibilities.

New York will be missing all three of its top point guard options in the second leg of a back-to-back. Delon Wright and Tyler Kolek appear poised to step up to the plate as fill-ins again, with Wright starting at point guard.

A starter in the Knicks’ last three games, Wright has reached double figures twice. He matched his season-high with 12 points on Tuesday while providing solid value in the rebound, assist and steals categories. Rostered in two percent of Yahoo! leagues, Wright hasn’t done enough to justify being rostered in most leagues. However, he’s done enough to earn Tom Thibodeau’s trust and hold off rookie Tyler Kolek, who continues to come off the bench. Kolek played 20 minutes against Philadelphia, finishing with seven points, four rebounds, seven assists, one steal, one block and one three-pointer. Wright and Kolek will handle the point guard duties as long as Miles McBride and Cameron Payne remain sidelined.

New York will once again be down their top three point guard options, with Jalen Brunson (ankle) still sidelined. Delon Wright has started the last two games for the Knicks, averaging 9.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, three assists, 1.5 steals, one block and 1.5 triples while playing 32.5 minutes per game. Rookie Tyler Kolek has filled out the backup minutes, and while he is more than capable of dishing out plenty of assists in limited action, he hasn’t seen the bump in minutes necessary to provide standard league value.