New York Knicks guard RJ Barrett played just 19 minutes in their loss to the Miami Heat on Sunday. Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau benched him midway in the third quarter and never fielded him back, much to the confusion of fans. After the game, Thibodeau explained the reason behind the decision.

Per Marc Berman of the New York Post, Thibodeau claimed that he was just looking for other options. He pointed out that this does not mean dissatisfaction with Barrett's performance, who blew a pick-and-roll coverage before being relegated to the bench.

“Just searching. Just trying to find energy. That’s why we did what we did. Obviously, I’m very pleased with RJ overall. We’ll take a look at film and make corrections.’’

In his short stint, Barrett only finished with three points, way below his 17.8 average this season. He missed five of his six shots and just had two rebounds and a steal. The former Duke standout was averaging 37.0 minutes per game prior to the meeting against the Heat.

While Thibodeau was pleased with their first half showing, he didn't like their defensive effort overall, especially against an almost-complete Heat roster.

“We never got established defensively from the start of the game. They’re a different team when Jimmy (Butler) plays. Offensively I liked the first half, but defensively we have to be a lot better. There were several possessions we had pretty good defense but didn’t finish our defense. Against a team like that, they’re going to keep moving and we have to play the whole clock.”

RJ Barrett will search for more playing time on Tuesday as the Knicks play the Heat again.