One Key Knicks Player Has Quietly Faded Out of the Rotation

Point guard Jose Alvarado did not get off the bench in Saturday's 109-97 win at Cleveland, and for the New York Knicks, it was the clearest sign yet that the backup point guard job has moved on without him.

The box score listed it as a coach's decision, capping a slide that began with an ankle injury and has only grown since he came back.

Alvarado played 16 minutes in the season opener against Philadelphia and 11 at Boston three nights later, but then he sprained his left ankle and missed four straight games while point guard Tyler Kolek took the job and ran with it.

Since Alvarado returned, he has played nine minutes against Brooklyn and nine more against Chicago, without scoring in either game.

Kolek has played in seven straight games and is averaging 5.1 assists in just 12.4 minutes a night, and he had five assists in 14 minutes in Cleveland while Alvarado watched.

Head coach Mike Brown explained on Wednesday that the backup spots are always up for grabs, as NY Post reporter Jared Schwartz posted.

"I said this before, every position coming off the bench is a competition, all the time. Nobody's minutes are set in stone," Brown said.

Brown added that he was going with Kolek, but that he would go back to Alvarado if he felt Kolek was not getting it done.

Alvarado was in a much better spot a few months ago, after the Knicks traded for the Brooklyn native in February, he played 16.9 minutes a game in 28 regular-season games, and he was part of the playoff rotation during the run to the 2026 title.

In Game 4 of the NBA Finals, he had eight points and three assists in the fourth quarter of a 107-106 comeback win over San Antonio.

He also declined a player option and re-signed in the summer on a three-year deal worth more than $14 million, according to ESPN's Shams Charania, so the Knicks clearly wanted him around.

The slide is a little surprising, but Kolek has earned his minutes, as he has shown he can play well next to point guard Jalen Brunson, and he takes care of the ball, with only 0.6 turnovers a game.

I still think Alvarado will get another chance, since guard Josh Hart has missed two straight games with right ankle soreness, guard Landry Shamet has been starting in his place, and an 82-game season always brings injuries.

Alvarado has already shown he can help in big moments, and the trade that brought him home last season happened for a reason, so I would not count him out.

The Knicks are 5-4 and have won three straight after an 0-3 start, and Brown liked a lot of what he saw in Cleveland.

They host Milwaukee on Tuesday and Cleveland on Wednesday at Madison Square Garden.

If Kolek keeps playing this well, Alvarado will have to stay ready, because right now the minutes belong to someone else, and the only way back in is to be sharp the moment Brown calls his name.