Knicks Injury Tracker: Karl-Anthony Towns to miss second straight game with thumb sprain

Here are the latest news updates and possible return dates for Knicks players…

Jan. 17, 7:10 p.m.

The Knicks announced Karl-Anthony Towns will miss Friday’s matchup with the Minnesota Timberwolves, his second consecutive game missed, with a thumb sprain.

Towns is also dealing with a bone chip in his thumb but the team says that is not what’s keeping him out of the lineup. Towns was questionable heading into Friday’s game and coach Tom Thibodeau said the center would go through pre-game warmups before a decision was made.

The Knicks defeated the 76ers without Towns on Wednesday, and will look to do the same Friday when they host the T-Wolves and the returning Julius Randle.

Jan. 15, 5:45 p.m.

A day after being listed as questionable with a sprained thumb, Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said Karl-Anthony Towns will miss Wednesday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Towns hurt his shooting thumb in Monday’s loss to the Pistons. Wednesday will mark the fourth game Towns has missed this season.

Jericho Sims (back) is available for tonight’s game, per Thibodeau.

Jan. 14: 5:40 p.m

There’s a new disconcerting ailment bothering Karl-Anthony Towns, as the Knicks announced the superstar center is listed questionable for Wednesday’s road game against the rival Philadelphia 76ers due to a right thumb injury.

Towns hurt his shooting thumb in Monday’s loss to the Detroit Pistons, after slamming his hand on the backboard during a first-half drive. While he managed to rack up 26 points and 12 rebounds in 43 minutes, he was seen grabbing his thumb in pain at one point late in the third quarter.

The Knicks have also listed Jalen Brunson (shoulder soreness) as probable and Jericho Sims (back spasms) as questionable for Wednesday’s matchup in Philadelphia.

Jan. 7, 5:37 p.m.

The Knicks have announced Karl-Anthony Towns (knee) and Miles McBride (hamstring) are listed as questionable for Wednesday’s home game against the Toronto Raptors.

Towns, who injured his right knee late in the team’s road loss to the Chicago Bulls on Jan. 4, sat out Monday’s game against the Orlando Magic with knee tendinopathy. McBride has also missed the Knicks’ last four games.

Jan. 6, 7:10 p.m.

The Knicks ruled out Karl-Anthony Towns (knee) and Miles McBride (hamstring) for Monday’s game against the Orlando Magic, the team announced shortly before tip-off.

This is the fourth straight game that McBride has missed.

Jericho Sims has been given the nod to start at center.

Jan. 6, 6:10 p.m.

Head coach Tom Thibodeau said that Karl-Anthony Towns will warm up prior to the Knicks’ game on Monday against the Orlando Magic before making a final determination on the center’s availability.

Towns is currently questionable with patellar tendinopathy in his right knee, the team announced.

Miles McBride (hamstring) is also a game-time decision, potentially leaving New York’s already thin bench even more shorthanded. The Knicks recalled big man Ariel Hukporti from the G League Westchester Knicks earlier on Monday to bolster the front court options.

Jan. 1, 6:15 p.m.

Mitchell Robinson still hasn’t been cleared to return to practice, Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau said before Wednesday’s game against the Utah Jazz.

However, the center is “doing well” and the team is “anticipating that sometime this month he’ll be cleared to practice.”

Robinson, who has not yet returned to running full speed, hasn’t appeared in a game this season after undergoing a procedure on his foot this offseason after sustaining the injury during last season’s playoff run.

Dec. 27, 5:53 p.m.

Speaking to reporters before taking on the Orlando Magic on Friday night, Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau offered an update on injured center Mitchell Robinson.

Thibs said Robinson, who has missed the entire season as he works back from an ankle injury, has “worked extremely hard” and is “light and lean” as he nears his return for New York.

Before getting cleared to practice, Robinson will first need to begin running at full speed, which is the next step for the 26-year-old, followed by contact.

Dec. 7, 7:25 p.m.

The Knicks announced that Jalen Brunson is available for Saturday’s game against the Detroit Pistons while Karl-Anthony Towns, and Cameron Payne are officially out.

Towns, who is averaging 25 points and 13 rebounds per game, was a late addition to the injury report with patellar tendinopathy in his right knee.

Brunson left Thursday’s game against the Hornets with a few minutes remaining in the third quarter with a back/rib issue he suffered while being bumped into on a defensive play. The star point guard did not return for the fourth, but the Knicks also carried a significant lead at the time.

Payne has been sidelined with an elbow injury, and he is being considered day-to-day.

Dec. 5, 10:45 p.m.

After Thursday’s win over the Hornets, Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said that Cam Payne (elbow) is considered day-to-day.

Thibodeau said they will see how Payne feels Friday before giving an update. The Knicks’ next game is against the Detroit Pistons on Saturday night at The Garden.

Payne has been Thibodeau’s most trusted bench players. He along with Miles McBride give the Knicks plus guard play off the bench. So far this season, Payne is averaging eight points and 3.4 assists per game.

Star guard Jalen Brunson left Thursday’s game with a back/rib injury after taking a bump on a defensive play with minutes to go in the third quarter. Brunson immediately went into the locker room but did return to the Knicks bench with about nine minutes left in the game. Thibodeau said that Brunson was fine and could have went into the game if needed.

With the large Knicks lead, Brunson’s services was not needed and finished with 24 points and five assists in 27 minutes of play.

Dec. 5, 7:10 p.m.

The Knicks announced Cam Payne (elbow) is out for Thursday’s game against the Charlotte Hornets. The guard played 18 minutes in the team’s win against the Orlando Magic on Tuesday, scoring seven points with three assists.

Precious Achiuwa, who has missed the regular season since injuring his hamstring in the preseason finale in mid-October, is available tonight after going through warmups.

Dec. 4, 7:15 p.m.

The Knicks listed Precious Achiuwa (hamstring) as questionable for Thursday’s game against the Charlotte Hornets.

Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said Monday that Achiuwa is “getting closer” and that he could return “in a week or so.” Well, it looks like that time is getting closer just in time to give the Knicks some much-needed depth at the center/power forward position. Achiuwa averaged 7.6 points and 7.2 rebounds in 24 minutes per game with the Knicks after coming over from the Toronto Raptors with OG Anunoby.

Achiuwa has missed the entire regular season so far due to his hamstring strain that he suffered late in the preseason.

Cam Payne is also questionable with an elbow injury. The bench guard played 18 minutes in Tuesday’s win against the Orlando Magic where he scored seven points and dished three assists.

Nov. 23, 3:58 p.m.

Miles McBride (left knee) will miss his fifth straight game on Saturday when the Knicks take on the Utah Jazz.

McBride’s injury had previously been called knee inflammation, but is now said to be Patella Femoral Syndrome or Patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) — best known as “runner’s knee.”

McBride was upgraded to questionable earlier in the day but was later ruled out. As for when the guard will return to the court, he’s “close, not there,” according to Newsday’s Steve Popper.

He last played on Nov. 13 against the Chicago Bulls, scoring two points in 23 minutes of action. McBride is averaging 10.7 points per game over 11 contests this season.

Nov. 15, 7:00 p.m.

The Knicks will be even more shorthanded when they take the court Friday night against the crosstown rival Nets, as Karl-Anthony Towns (knee contusion) and Miles McBride (illness) have both been ruled out.

Towns has been spectacular since being acquired in a deal with the Timberwolves, averaging 26.5 points and 12.2 rebounds per game, but the Knicks will need backup Jericho Sims to step into the starting lineup with him sidelined for the first time this season.

McBride is also a huge loss for a Knicks bench that’s already short early on this season.

Nov. 11, 6:25 p.m.

Miles McBride is questionable for Tuesday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers due to left knee inflammation.

McBride, 24, is averaging a career-high 11.2 points per game this season in his fourth year, up from 8.3 points per game last season.

The Knicks also listed Cameron Payne as questionable due to a strained left hamstring that has limited him to only five games this season. Payne last played on Nov. 1.

Nov. 1, 10:07 p.m.

Precious Achiuwa (hamstring) traveled with the Knicks, whose four-game road trip continued Friday in Detroit as New York notched a 128-98 win over the Pistons.

After the game, Tom Thibodeau explained the forward’s injury status.

“He’s doing a little more on the court,” Thibodeau said when asked if there was a chance of Achiuwa playing on the road trip. “Once a guy can start doing some stuff on the court, usually, they’ll travel with us. Sometimes it’s better to keep them back because we can do more rehab stuff at the facility. So it’s case by case, but he’s making good, steady progress. He hasn’t actually gone through practice practice yet.”

Achiuwa, who last played for the Knicks in an Oct. 18 preseason game at the Washington Wizards, averaged 7.6 points and 7.2 rebounds in 24.2 minutes over 49 games with New York last season.

The Knicks close out the road trip with Monday’s game at the Houston Rockets and Wednesday’s tip against the Hawks in Atlanta before returning home for Friday’s matchup with the Milwaukee Bucks.

Nov. 1, 6:48 p.m.

Karl-Anthony Towns, who entered Friday’s 7 p.m. game at the Detroit Pistons as a game-time decision due to a left wrist sprain, is available and starting for the Knicks.

Towns scored 44 points on 17-of-25 shooting while adding 13 rebounds and two assists in 39 minutes of Wednesday’s 116-107 win at the Miami Heat.

Through four games, Towns is averaging 22.5 points, 11.3 rebounds and two assists in 31.8 minutes.

Oct. 31, 6:11 p.m.

Before the Knicks’ Friday night matchup with the Detroit Pistons, New York has placed Karl-Anthony Towns on its injury report.

The report has designated Towns as questionable with a left wrist sprain.

This comes less than a day before the new Knicks center exploded for 44 points and 13 rebounds in Wednesday’s 116-107 win at the Miami Heat.

While the designation should be something to keep an eye on, this could simply be a formality as Towns goes through his pregame routine and workout before a decision is made.

Josh Hart entered the Heat game as questionable, due to a lower leg contusion, and played.