While everyone on the Knicks seems to be dropping like flies, one player after another suffering from some sort of injury, the oldest Knick — 40-year-old forward Kurt Thomas — has managed to remain the picture of health.
He has a secret: yoga.
“It’s been really big for me,” he said during the MSG Network’s Knicks Season Roundtable at Clyde Frazier’s Wine & Dine Restaurant in Chelsea on Thursday night. “It helps my flexibility, keeps me at a high level. Mentally, it keeps my body right.”
The 6-foot-9 Thomas, known for his hard-nosed style and tough defense, began taking yoga classes eight years ago at the suggestion of a hometown friend in Dallas, and he credits the exercise with his ability to stay mostly injury-free.
Thomas may find himself starting for the Knicks at center — as he did eight years ago — when the regular season gets under way Nov. 1 against the Nets at Barclays Center.
The Knicks received good injury news on Thursday when an MRI exam showed All-Star center Tyson Chandler suffered a bone bruise — not any ligament damage — to his left knee in Wednesday night’s preseason contest against the Nets. Chandler is day-to-day, but the chance remains he won’t be back in time for the regular-season opener, meaning Thomas would get the start.
“It’s a possibility,” Thomas said. “I’ve prepared every day to go out and do my job. Whatever Coach [Mike] Woodson wants me to do, I’m going to do it, if he wants me to start or [come off] the bench.”
Thomas said all of the injuries — from J.R. Smith to Chandler, Ronnie Brewer, Marcus Camby and Iman Shumpert — are a “concern,” but said he is confident the Knicks will be a force to be reckoned with this season.
“We still have enough to go out there and compete against any team,” Thomas said. “We’ve love to have those guys back on the floor — it makes us a stronger team — but we have to be focused on the guys who are healthy and ready to go.”