Knicks head to Boston with a 3 game win streak
Knicks' 129-107 win over the Charlotte Hornets sends them into Boston with momentum
The New York Knicks defeated the Charlotte Hornets 129-107 in a thrilling Sunday afternoon victory. The 129 was the season high for the Knicks.
The game
The Knicks big three of RJ Barrett, Julius Randle, and Jalen Brunson scored in the twenties, 24, 23, and 20, respectively. That is always a recipe for a Knicks win: that and their unselfish play.
The team had some new moves for this matinee crowd, “razzling and dazzling (in my best Clyde Frazier impersonation). The best one of the game was the Immanuel Quickley to Donte DiVincenzo to Isaiah Hartenstein for a monster of a dunk. Beautiful! Their ball movement and taking care of the ball (the Knicks had just nine turnovers in this game) helped the Knicks to this win.
The Knicks shot 54% from the field, 41.7% from beyond the arc, and 66.7% from the line. They had 22 fast break points to the Hornets’ eight.
In addition, Tom Thibodeaus’ Knicks topped Steve Clifford’s Hornets in:
Total Rebounds - Knicks 40/Hornets 36
Fast Break Points - Knicks 22/Hornets 8
Defensive Rebounds - Knicks 30/Hornets 21
Points off Turnovers - Knicks 20/Hornets 10
Surprisingly, the Hornets topped the Knicks with 15 offensive rebounds to the Knicks 10.
The players
Julius Randle had 23 points, five rebounds, five assists, and three steals. He shot 50% from the field. Jalen Brunson, who seemed to take a brutal hit in the face by Lamelo Ball, ended the game with 20 points on 58.3% shooting.
Quickley led the second unit with 17 points, five rebounds, and nine assists. He shot 55.6% from the field and 66.7% from three. Quickley came in the game scoring nine points in his first nine minutes.
The big man, Mitchell Robinson, made sure the Hornets center, who had just had a tremendous 21 points, 24 rebounds game against the Washington Wizards, did not have such a game in his house. Williams was not in contention with the Knicks’ big guy, who had 10 points, nine rebounds, five offensive, and four defensive. Williams ended the game with four rebounds and 10 points.
The Hornets’ LaMelo Ball led all scorers with 32 points. He also had seven rebounds and six assists. Brandon Miller had 11 points but had to leave the game in the first quarter after a sprain to his left ankle.
The game ball goes to…
“Three-point ball…R J Barrett! Barrett is continuing his excellent play, which started on day one. Even the injury to his knee has not stopped him. He came back and picked up where he left off.
RJ Barrett led all scorers with 24 points, adding four rebounds, two assists and a steal.
Barrett shot 56.3% from the field and 66.7% from beyond the arc. He had a massive dunk on Hornets’ Williams in the second quarter.
And if that wasn’t enough, RJ Barrett is the youngest Knick ever to reach 5,000 points!
In my opinion…
This was a great game and one that was needed for this team before heading to Boston. It seems that Randle is feeling better, but that doesn’t mean he should be in the game until he has to ask to come out.
Thibs is doing better. He had the second and third-unit players in the game with a little over six minutes left. Jericho Sims came in for Isaiah Hartenstein due to his fouling out. But Thibs is still leaving his starters in for too long. He can still be better, which he’s trying to do. Especially during the first game of a back-to-back when they’re going on the road to Boston.
Next up…
The Knicks take on the Boston Celtics in the Knicks’ third back-to-back of this young season. The Knicks and Celtics met in the first game of the season in Madison Square Garden. I thought the Knicks played a good game, although Brunson and Randle did not have their regular 20-plus points game. In their last five matchups, the Knicks are leading three to two.
Let’s hope the momentum of the three-game win streak moves the Knicks to even the score 1-1 for this season so far. The Knicks are one game above .500, and their fans hope to see this young team's continued growth.
The Knicks are starting a five-game road trip Monday. They have another back-to-back this coming Thursday and Friday, which includes an In-Season Tournament game on Friday against the Washington Wizards.
I will bring you more in-depth pieces on the games, players, and coaches during this season.
Until next time, stay safe and healthy!