The Knicks had to play a basketball game because there is this thing called the National Basketball League that happens to have a set-in-stone schedule that never stops churning out matchups on a daily basis, and which is also a league the organization has been a member of since 1949 (or 1946 if you’re picky).
They had to do so without having three of their on-paper starters available. You already know the names, ordered chronologically by when they suffered their injuries: Mitchell Robinson, Julius Randle, and OG Anunoby.
And of course, the Knicks kept filling their shelves with more damaged goods as Jalen Brunson had to leave the court not even a minute into what ended up being another W in New York’s season.