At midnight, it will be March, the time of year when Knicks fans usually stay glued to tankathon.com while waiting for another season to end. This year, however, Knicks fans will wake up tomorrow for a team currently fourth in the Eastern Conference at 18-17. Sure, the NBA schedule has been delayed, but we’re over 0.500 after 35 games for the first time in eight years.
Sunday’s competition with the humble Detroit Pistons smelled like a trap game, with the Knicks the second night in a row after a 48-minute war with the Pacers the night before. The first half was a bad one, although the good guys came out with a 48-37 lead thanks to some timely three-point kicks.
For the past few weeks, this club has struggled to get out of range. However, that was not the case on Sunday, as Julius Randle and RJ Barrett dominated the Pistons, while the Knicks increased their lead to 20 points.
Julius played with the Pistons in the second half, launching jab-step jumpers as the main Melo.
Arriving tonight, I thought RJ Barrett would be a big key to the Knicks, as the only pair of young legs on the starting lineup. He certainly advanced to the Knicks, with 21 points from 8-13 shots.
We will also give some credit to Nerlens Noel, who was a beast once again, playing great minutes with Taj Gibson out.
I will repeat: we are over 0.500 people. Recap to come.