The Knicks BigFour played well together, averaging 30 mpg. Jalen Brunson had the hot hand and exchanged his previous 4-14 for 10-16, including 3-5 from deep. RJ Barrett continued his excellent 3 pt shooting with 4 – 7. He tied Mitch for a team high 12 boards. Julius Randle had an off night, but did nothing detrimental to the team.
The night belonged to Mitchell Robinson. He was a monster in the paint. The capable Daniel Gafford could do nothing to stop Robinson’s offensive rebounding and thunderous dunks. Mitch was 9-12 for 20 pts and 9 of his 12 were offensive rebounds. His little buddy, IQ, added 9 boards in an otherwise forgetable effort.
So far, the Knicks starters are sharing the ball and it is moving a lot better. Last year the Knicks were last in assists at 22 per. They have averaged 25 in the preseason. They had a high of 27 against the Pistons, the strongest defensive team they have faced. Perhaps the ease with which the starters have been able to score has minimized the need for that extra pass. Charlotte averaged a league best 28 last year and GSW took the assist honors the year before with 27.6. If this altruistic spirit continues in the regular season, the Knicks may well win more than 45 games.
Here’s a word about Knick hype from their broadcast team. Two thirds of the teams make the playoffs, so when the talking heads say that the Knicks have a tough stretch of games against playoff teams, it is spin. Roughly two out of every three games will be against playoff teams.
As to the Wizards, their back court of Beal and Morris was atrocious. Their two most promising prospects to start at PG are Delon Wright and Devon Dotson. Morris was a -36 and Wright was a +20. One game is not a good indication of any player’s worth and Monte is new to the Eastern conference. Delon has been a solid G on both sides of the ball, and diminuative Devon (6’0”), based on his career at KU, will give smaller PGs all they can handle with his exceptional quickness. Dotson’s major weakness has been his shot. With Chicago, his appearances were insufficient to evaluate his development. Washington may be a different team with KP and Avdija in the lineup. Perhaps Deni will be the main distributor as a point forward. His passing skills are superior.
Did Kyle Kuzma remind anyond of the Knick’s Cam Reddish? Again, one game does not provide an accurate basis for a player evaluation, but Hachimura looked like the starter.
Memphis on Wednesday, the Knicks will face their first strong opposition. JJJ is out and Steven Adams is questionable. Feed the big dog, the Knicks beast, Mitchell Robinson.