New York entered Wednesday’s clash in Orlando with a chance to return to 0.500, while extending their winning streak to four, but by the end of the third quarter the Knicks’ magic was over and in the final period the Magic ran away with the victory .
The contest had all the characteristics of a deception game from the beginning. The Knicks were on the rise after Julius Randle exploded 44 points against the Atlanta Hawks on Monday, taking New York to a third successive victory and consolidating his position as an All-Star contender. But they were also playing their fourth game in six days. Still, it was starting to look like the Knicks, in some kind of official capacity, were no longer a laughing stock. People cried out to board the train. Bloggers begged retailers to sell them Immanuel Quickley merchandise.
Wow, really wiped out his tweet aimlessly after David Fizdale was fired last year.
Unfortunately, despite a hot start, it would ultimately be a game of deception. RJ Barrett, who has been inconsistent since the beginning of February, went straight to work, skillfully hitting the first bucket of the game. Evan Fournier immediately followed with a three, Randle hit back with a 15-foot shot, and we were ready for the races.
The Knicks were in the beginning, hitting seven out of eight early in the evening, but Magic was keeping pace. The teams exchanged clues through the first, and Walt Clyde Frazier was delighted with puns about how Orlando striker Dwayne Bacon was “cooking” and “boiling”.
As the quarter passed, the Knicks began to increase their advantage, thanks to Randle, who was actually cooking and boiling; he scored 13 points out of 5-6 on the field and 3-3 in first place.
Immanuel Quickley entered the game with a few minutes to spare and promptly scored a foul after the bomb feigned and sneaked into contact. He’s becoming the king of deceiving guys and getting him dirty. Quickley hit all four free throws on the first, and when the bell rang in the period, the Knicks won 32-23.
Without Randle on the floor, the Knicks popped up to start the second. Quickley hit a few more free throws, but on the other hand the second unit looked a little sloppy. Soon, Orlando reduced the advantage from 11 points to two. So they were winning.
Losing 39-38, Tom Thibodeau asked for a time limit and reinserted the starting line-up, which served to balance the Knicks stumbles. Elfrid Payton forced his way inside for some buckets and the teams exchanged rims. The Knicks had a 56-53 lead at halftime.
In the first half, the Knicks hit 21-40 (52.5%) on the field and hit 3-8 (37.5%) from the bottom, adding 56 points. Then the wheels fell off the car; in the third, the Knicks hit 6-20 (30%) and 1-9 out of three (11.1%). It didn’t start so badly, with Payton continuing his exploits in the beginning.
But the Knicks were unable to get away and, apparently, all shots started to fail. Although they kept it closed for much of the period, the momentum was clearly changing. Ultimately, Randle, Barrett and Payton are the only Knicks to score in the third, and in the second half of the quarter Orlando was in double digits. Six Magic entered the board in the period, five of which scored at least five points. Magic also hit 5 of 11 trios in the third, and took 83-70 in the final quarter.
The Knicks were lifeless in the room. His legs were gelatinous and his shots were shorter than Muggsy Bogues. Between the end of the third and the first minutes of the fourth, the Knicks missed 15 consecutive shots. Alec Burks provided a small spark of false hope at the end of the night with two consecutive trios to reduce the 17-point lead to 11, but Magic regained their composure and managed to keep the Knicks at bay for the rest of the night.
In the end, the Knicks came out in greed, being defeated by 21 in the second half. The loss drops to 14-16. At the time this sentence was written, the Knicks would be the sixth seed in the East if the season ended today, so look at the bright side and whatnot.
Grades:
> Randle was super, but not superhuman. He finished with 25 points (11-19 shots), 7 rebounds and 3 assists, in addition to 5 turns. Many rotations.
> Quickley fought, shooting 1-12. His only basket made was one buried at the time of trash. Still, IQ hit each of its seven free throws, totaling 9 points. It also has 2 plates, 1 assistance, 1 theft, 1 block and zero turnovers. He’s not going to shoot 1-12 very often, guys.
> Noel continues to do rock solid work, replacing Mitchell Robinson. He had 6 points and 9 rebounds on Wednesday. There is definitely a downfall with Taj Gibson needing to play significant reserve minutes instead of being a third big man available.
> Everyone’s favorite bench defense court, IQ and Derrick Rose, hit a combined 2-22 on the field. That is 9%.
Look, this was bad. It was bad because at first it looked like the Knicks were going to win, but then they started playing like shit and it was suddenly obvious that they had no chance. Real Clydes Wear Plaid put it perfectly: “Well, that was awful.”
But don’t despair. The Knicks have time to rest, as they only play again on Sunday against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Your legs should be very fresh by then.