The New York Knicks made adding depth a priority this past offseason after their Karl-Anthony Towns trade back in September 2024 put them way too close to the tax apron and prevented them from adding more supporting pieces. One of the players the Knicks added was Guerschon Yabusele, a man whose NBA career underwent a revival after turning himself into quite the player overseas.
However, Yabusele has not been nearly as good with the Knicks as he was with the Philadelphia 76ers last season. The 30-year-old French big man has even found himself out of the rotation in recent games. But on Thursday night, with Karl-Anthony Towns and Mitchell Robinson out of action against the Indiana Pacers, Yabusele got an opportunity that he ended up fumbling.
After one brutal sequence in the first half to cap off a horrid first half for Yabusele that saw him post a plus-minus of -14 in his first five minutes, Knicks play by play commentator and Hall of Famer Mike Breen got 100 percent real on his struggles.
“Every turnover, every missed shot, every defensive mistake is so magnified because he so desperately wants to play well,” Breen said, via @NBA_NewYork on X (formerly Twitter).
"Every turnover, every missed shot, every defensive mistake is so magnified because he so desperately wants to play well"
–– Mike Breen as Guerschon Yabusele goes -14 his first 5 minutes pic.twitter.com/GVHkCJgU0A
— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) December 19, 2025
Guerschon Yabusele still finding his footing in a Knicks uniform
Yabusele has found himself fourth in the Knicks' center pecking order, with Ariel Hukporti drawing the start for New York in their win over Indiana on Thursday (courtesy of a Jalen Brunson game-winner). Hukporti played 27 minutes, while Yabusele suited up for just 11. In those 11 minutes, Yabusele ended up being a -17 on the night.
The veteran forward simply has to let the game come to him; it seems like he's trying to do too much at this point which makes every miscue of his feel that much worse. But the Knicks, a team with contending aspirations, can't afford to wait for him to figure it out.
