After several days of sightseeing, charitable events and team dinners, the New York Knicks and Washington Wizards will get down to business Thursday at London's O2 Arena.
Playing in the London game means obligations and opportunities beyond the court as the two teams, though not among the NBA's elite, are representing the league on the world stage.
The Fiz Kids have arrived in London 🇬 pic.twitter.com/mKMkgHM8pE
- SNY (@SNYtv) January 15, 2019
The Knicks (10-33), in fact, are playing their third game in London since 2013.
"We'll try to do it in a way that doesn't have them on their feet a lot," Knicks coach David Fizdale told the New York Post regarding the planned outings. "But they gotta see all of that. They gotta experience it. The whole beauty of this is learning about new culture, new food, new everything. You gotta open up your mind."
New York can certainly use the time away from basketball. The Knicks are in a 2-17 stretch and things won't get any easier against Washington as they will be without their leading rebounder and third-leading scorer, Enes Kanter.
Kanter, who has feuded with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, stayed in the United States due to worries about his safety. A Turkish newspaper reported that Turkish prosecutors are seeking an international arrest warrant and extradition for Kanter, claiming he's a member of a terror organization.
He responded on Twitter on Wednesday, writing, in part, "Turkish Government can NOT present any single piece of evidence of my wrongdoing." >> Read More
Copyright 2019 by the Associated Press
