Last week, in game three of the young NBA season, the Knicks faced the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Garden. The game neared the end, with Jaen Brunson and Darius Garland dueling until the final buzzer. If you were a box score watcher, you saw this with four minutes to play.

Disappointing, to say the least.

If you were the kind of guy who would rather watch the game, you saw that this instead of.

Ultimately, an offensive foul was called, but the Garden was on its feet. The Knicks may have lost the game, but the momentum swing was palpable.

All thanks to the major off-season acquisition… Ariel Hukporti?

If you know anything about Tom Thibodeau, you know he prefers to run tight rotations. And that there are even fewer exceptions among rookies.

According to Statmuse, rookies have done that never averaged more than a combined 28.5 minutes per game on a Thibs team. Aside from Immanuel Quickley and Obi Toppin in 2020-21, and Quentin Grimes emerging late the following year, it’s been about a decade since a rookie has legitimately contributed to a Tom Thibodeau rotation.

All this to say…it’s an uphill battle. So the real shock isn’t that Ariel Hukporti dropped an absolute nuke on Evan Mobley’s head; it’s that he was on the field at all.

Clearly, the Knicks are happy with what they’ve seen so far in the 58th pick, as Hukporti’s two-way deal was just converted to a standard two-year contract. But would Thibs be confident enough to leave him this late in the game? Surprising.

Hukporti is still waiting to score his first NBA points after 29 minutes of play. He’s still hot on the heels of Jericho Sims at the backup center spot, who has been unremarkable in his minutes. And if current trends hold, don’t be surprised if Hukporti ends up beating him in the rotation.

That’s not the only rookie crying out for playing time either.

First-round pick Pacome Dadiet got a 13-minute run in the season opener against Boston, knocking down one of his two attempts from downtown and getting his legs under him. Although he has only played nine minutes since then, he has looked strong in pre-season, especially on the attacking side of the pitch. The 6-foot-4 small forward can fill in on the wing for minutes when called upon, and he seems willing to do so.

The other rookie, Tyler Kolek, was praised by Coach Thibs after the Rockets game on Monday night.

“I really like Kolek,” the coach said. “I think he’s learning like most young guys coming into the league. He’s a gym rat. Works extremely hard. Spends a lot of time studying film. Extra work. Excercise. He has really good veterans around. That helps to incorporate it into the way you learn. And then a lot of it is the trial and error of getting out there and doing it. So I think he puts everything into it. So we’ll see.”

(via New York Post)

You don’t hear that about a rookie coming out of Thibs’ mouth. Ever.

With Cam Payne held out of Monday’s game with a nagging hamstring injury, Kolek played meaningful minutes for the first time in his career. He knocked down the only shot he made. It was a three.

Kolek was touted as an NBA-ready guard, and he absolutely wowed in both summer league and preseason with his shot-creating ability. The man may commit a violation.

With Payne questionable to play tonight against Atlanta, Kolek may get another chance to work his way into more meaningful minutes (and subsequently an expanded rotation role). Thibs might not like it. But if the rookies continue to show their flashes as they are, he might not even have a choice.