Knicks TOs Give Raptors the Win 125 – 116
The Knicks lost to the Raptors by nine points and gave up nine more TurnOvers. This is not merely a coincidence. Examine the stat lines. The teams are very close in all but two categories. The Knicks had 9 more assists and TOs than Toronto. A greater number of assists is usually a good thing and more TOs is a bad thing. The play of Jalen Brunson has not lifted the Knicks Assist standings this year. They still rank 27th in the NBA at 22.5 per game. Thirty dimes is very promising.
Also promising was RJ Barrett’s increased visibility on D. He even picked up 4 personals, a rare occurrence for him. But once again, Barrett had the worst +/- on the team, a -12 in a 9 point loss. Grimes was +1 in 33 minutes.
Defense is the key to every team’s success in basketball because the offense always gets the benefit of the doubt on close calls, and the rules also favor the offense on charging calls. It has become so one-sided that a knowledgeable basketball guy like Mike Breen said that when Jules was double teamed along the sideline, that the defense “must give him room.” Another Breen gaff was when Giannis switched on to Brunson coming off a screen that Antetokounmpo was “impeding his progress”. This is the NBA David Stern nurtured. Recent history shows that when teams persevere on D despite these prejudices, they prevail.
Jules must stop his constant whining when the refs miss a call. He is not a victim. Randle benefits from more missed calls than he suffers. His anger should be directed at the team’s bad play rather than his personal grievances. Generally, he is playing better than in his break out year because he is more involved on defense. If Jules attitude matures and comes anywhere near the rest of his game, the Knicks have a fixture at PF for the next few years.
Looking at the upcoming competition, the Knicks should win 7 of their next 20 games the way they are playing. New York benefitted from a plethora of injuries to their opponents better players early in the year. Regression to the mean predicts that what goes around comes around, statistically, over a full season. A win was a win in the fall, a loss is a loss now.
Changes, not excuses, need to be made immediately. Increase McB, Sims and Grimes minutes. Grimes must use his natural J off a one or two dribble stop and pop. He has to be more aggressive on offense. Thibs must insist on movement and rail against aimless dribbling by Randle and Barrett. Randle’s slashes to the rim have been impressive and are set up by his outside shot. Finally, lack of D must be punished by extended minutes on the pine.
How unpardonable is Cam Reddish’s ‘Unpardonable sin’? Reddish was showing real progress as a defender while avoiding ‘going nut’ on offense. The Knicks could certainly use another strong defender with Mitch down.
With the trade deadline approaching, it would be foolish for LRose to trade the future for the present. Giving up draft picks doesn’t solve one of the Knicks’ major problems, players whose salaries are bigger than their contributions. Moving them is a greater priority than making the playoffs this year. Thibs must tie a team together, even if name players must be marginalized, to create a winning atmosphere the Knicks now lack.
Box Score: https://www.espn.in/nba/boxscore/_/gameId/401468855