Jalen Brunson, Tyrese Haliburton fighting injuries that could shape Knicks-Pacers Game 4

INDIANAPOLIS — The war of attrition was present in the postgame press conference from Tyrese Haliburton, who grabbed both rails to get himself down the steps and hobble away after the interview, stage left.

“It was my ankle,” Haliburton said. “I rolled my ankle on that steal with the layup in the fourth, and I landed on my tailbone there on that and-one. So just my overall body right now I’m hurting, but I mean they got guys hurting too, so we got to understand everybody’s hurting right now.”

Jalen Brunson is among those ailing.

The powerful explosion was absent from his cutting in Friday night’s Game 3 loss, and the obvious explanation, though Brunson wouldn’t admit it, is the mysterious “sore right foot,” as described by the injury report.

Soreness is a symptom, not an injury, but the Knicks haven’t explained why it’s there, and Brunson is never shorter with answers than when he’s talking about his health.

“If I’m out there, I’m playing,” he said. “There’s no excuse whether I’m hurting or not. If I’m hurting, I’ll come out.”