Players across the NBA took the opportunity of the All-Star break to head for tropical locales to rest up for the stretch run of the season.
Knicks guard Immanuel Quickley found some warm weather, too, albeit as a working vacation in Miami over the past several days.
Quickley was in the gym at both Christopher Columbus High School and the University of Miami working out with his skills trainer, Andrew Moran, of Miami Hoop School. That pairing also aligned last summer, when the combo guard began to make the notable improvements at both ends of the floor that Knicks fans have seen from the team’s sixth man this season.
“He’s always in the gym trying to find ways to better himself as a player,” Moran told The Post on Tuesday. “Knowing him personally, I already knew that’s what he was going to do. He’s all about the work, all about his team.
“Obviously they got a full week off, but he wanted to stay in tune with his game and stay in rhythm. He rested, took his few days, and then got back to work. That’s him. I work with a lot of guys and being in the gym with him is very high energy, and very good energy. I think that carries over to the court with his teammates.”
Moran is the head coach at Columbus in Miami, the No. 10 high-school team in the country in ESPN’s rankings and No. 12 on MaxPreps.com. His squad features the sophomore twin sons of former NBA All-Star Carlos Boozer. Cameron Boozer, a 6-foot-9 forward, is considered the No. 1 prospect in the Class of 2025 by Rivals.com, and his brother Cayden also is listed in the top 40 nationally.
Moran also has worked regularly in recent years with several NBA players, such as Mario Chalmers and ex-Knick Tim Hardaway Jr., and more recently with Quickley, Saddiq Bey and Mark Williams.
Quickley’s time with Moran last summer largely consisted of fine-tuning his offensive game — both on and off the ball — after the addition of $104 million point guard Jalen Brunson. With Miles McBride dropped from the rotation following the acquisition of Josh Hart before the trade deadline, Quickley again is the primary ball-handler on the second unit.
Over his past 25 appearances (including nine starts), Quickley has averaged 15.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.6 assists in 33.1 minutes per game.
But the third-year guard also has made noticeable strides at the defensive end, with the second-best defensive rating among the Knicks regulars and the third-best net rating on the team. Tom Thibodeau also has often noted how Quickley has assumed a vocal leadership role at that end of the court.
“He came in [last summer] with the mindset of trying to better himself defensively. Obviously, his coach is a defensive-minded coach, so he definitely wanted to improve there. As a player, that’s just who he is. He wants to be the best and most complete player that he can be,” Moran said. “I think to me his efficiency has gone way up, in terms of the amount of time he plays and how effective he is when he’s in the game. His defensive angles are much better. He asks a lot of questions.
“Obviously, he wanted to improve his overall game, but he also specifically wanted to improve in the areas where the organization wanted him to improve, to do what they asked of him. As you can see, he’s done that. He came in with a plan, and he’s really locked in on it. He loves the game, so he enjoys being in the gym and working. He’s one of those guys who’s always hungry to get better and to get new information.”