The New York Knicks hit the weekend consecutively at the Houston Rockets on Saturday night, 121-99. If my memory serves me correctly, they haven’t faced each other in the past three seasons. They have already done this twice in 2020-21.
While Julius Randle presented his usual solid game with 22 points, 9 rebounds and 2 assists, this belonged to the second Knicks unit. They helped New York to win an 18 point lead in the third quarter, but the starting lineup messed up and lost most of that advantage. Coach Tom Thibodeau turned to Derrick Rose and Immanuel Quickley, and they responded with a dominant performance.
Rose (16 points, 3 assists) was Mr. Interior.
Quickley (22 points, 4-6 out of three) was Mr. Out.
And we cannot forget the contributions of the bank brothers Alec Burks (4 assists) and Taj Gibson (16 minutes of the robust D supporting the holder Nerlens Noel). Obi Toppin scored 11 points for New York, including this spectacular material.
If the bank continues, the Knicks will continue to be a tough opponent. Recap to come.