Knicks Spoil James Harden’s Clipper Debut
Image Credit: Stephen Gosling/Getty Images
The New York Knicks had an impressive win last night against the Los Angeles Clippers in which they dominated on both ends of the floor. Julius Randle had his best game of the season as he ended up scoring 27 points on solid efficiency. RJ Barrett has also continued his excellent play as he racked up 26 points on 56% from the field and 50% from three. The only player for the Knicks that severely underperformed was Jalen Brunson who shot a whopping 17% from the field. It's a good sign for the Knicks, though, that they were able to win the way that they did even with Brunson’s struggles. One of the biggest keys to the Knicks win last night and in their other wins has been the continuous excellent play of Mitchell Robinson. Robinson collected 9 offensive rebounds last night which continues to be one of the biggest recipes for the teams’ success. Robinson’s offensive rebounding has been so elite that not only does he lead the league so far in offensive rebounds but he also has more offensive rebounds than four entire teams right now. These teams include the Houston Rockets, Milwaukee Bucks, Washington Wizards, and Oklahoma City Thunder. If Robinson can continue this level of success it will only mean great things for the Knicks and more recognition for Robinson as one of the most underappreciated players in the league.
There shouldn’t be too much to worry about on the Clippers side of things. James Harden played his first game last night since May 14th and still looked like he was right back into form. He will only get better as he gets more comfortable on this roster. The major concern right now is whether or not Harden and Westbrook playing together will hurt their games, however a majority of their minutes were played with the other on the bench. Once Terrance Mann comes back from injury he may get the starting nod over Russ. This could give Westbrook full reins with the bench unit. The other noteworthy performance from this game was the disastrous play of Paul George. George scored 10 points while shooting 18% from the field. This is not a regular occurrence for George and is not something the Clippers should be worried will continue long term. The Clippers were just up against a hungry team who had a rough loss the other night against the Milwaukke Bucks and desperately needed a win. The Clippers should have nothing to be concerned about and jump right back into the action tomorrow against the Nets.T