Lessons Learned From Knicks Loss Against the City’s Little Brother

Dec 2

The Knicks lost to the Nets 112-110 on Tuesday night, dropping their record to 11-10, which puts them at 10th place in the Eastern Conference at this exact moment in time. In a game that the Nets broke open in the 3rd quarter, things looked sorry, but the Knicks fought back to at one point take a lead off of a deep Immanuel Quickley 3 pointer in the 4th quarter.

First Lesson Learned: Thibs was absolutely right. Alec Burks can be the starting point guard of the New York Knicks. With an ending stat sheet of 25, 5, and 5, Alec Burks held his own against the team most likely to come out of the East. In a game where RJ Barrett had to leave due to illness, someone else needed to fulfill his production, and Alec Burks did all of that and a little extra. His shooting, ability to move off the ball, and be in the right spot is unmatched by any other player on this roster.

Second Lesson Learned: Never take Derrick Rose for granted. Derrick Rose was a key player in getting the Knicks back into the game in the 3rd quarter. Something else worthy of mention, however, is that he also had some great plays in the first half to make sure the Knicks could stay competitive, including the crossover into the jumper over Paul Millsap. He was also formidable on defense, but the offensive spark he brings along with Quickley is incredible.

Last Lesson: Julius Randle is actually pretty good, but man, he cannot stay out of his own head. I would like to say first, though, that Randle has the right to be mad after what the ref said to him about drawing fouls. That type of stuff from referees only encourages flopping in the NBA, and it is ridiculous. Back to Randle’s mentality, he CANNOT commit a technical foul that late in the game, especially when it is so close, and so winnable. Games like that one show that anybody in the NBA can beat anybody else, and when you’re in such a great position to do so, you cannot give away the opportunity like that.

The Knicks play the Chicago Bulls at home tonight.