The New York Knicks fell to the Washington Wizards 105-116. New York looked exhausted while Washington was in command from start to finish.
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The New York Knicks lost to the Washington Wizards 105 to 116. The Knicks seemed tired from the opening tip, likely the result of extended minutes in their back-to-back that concluded with a letdown loss. The Wizards took the lead from the opening tip and never relinquished. Washington seemed locked in, hitting seven threes in the first quarter and never cooling off. But it helped that the listless Knicks seemed slow to close out and a step behind on rotations.
The Knicks showed fight in bursts. A hot hand would spark some scoring, and the Knicks would cut into the lead, but Washington always answered with a backbreaking three. That left the Knicks looking lost and defeated while the daggers from Washington quieted the Garden crowd. Let’s take a look at the good, the bad, and the ugly from this rough night for the Knicks.
Fatigue sets in early for some of New York’s starters
Jalen Brunson: 32 PTS (11/24 FG, 2/3 3PT, 8/8 FT), 4 AST, 3 REB, 2 STL, 1 TO in 38 mins
Jalen Brunson scored in bursts but hit a couple of rare cold streaks from the field as well. As a result, he couldn’t sustain his offense long enough to spark a real comeback. The point guard still used speed changes and quick bursts to apply pressure to defenders, reaching his spots and drawing fouls to put up 32 points. But his scoring felt like it required more work. On top of that, Brunson didn’t facilitate as effectively as we’ve become accustomed to, which explains the the team’s lackluster ball movement.
Brunson let me down on defense. Monte Morris had too much space to shoot and blew by Brunson when the two were close together. Morris didn’t put up huge numbers, but he was highly efficient and picked up a few timely baskets that hurt.
Brunson still put up 32 points while shooting 45.8 percent from the field, along with 4 assists and just 1 turnover. But this felt like a more difficult performance, considering he iso’ed more than usual. He’s the catalyst for so much that even slight deviations from the norm have a significant impact. Brunson gets a 3.5 out of 5 for a good, not great, night.
Quentin Grimes: 14 PTS (5/10 FG, 3/7 3PT, 1/2 FT), 1 AST, 2 REB, 1 STL, 1 TO in 31 mins
Quentin Grimes stepped up for struggling teammates, but I’d still like to see more assertion. That’s a tall ask after the shooter fired off 7 three-point attempts and knocked down 5 of 10 field goal attempts. But the 3:7 ratio on two-pointers and threes has my attention because Grimes has been great going to the basket. He did everything well on offense, from shooting to driving and cutting to passing, but that makes me wish he’d feature more.
Defense is always reliable with Grimes, but he ran into trouble between Bradley Beal’s crafty approach and Kyle Kuzma’s size. It’s rare to see Grimes beaten to the basket multiple times in a single game. That said, Grimes was comfortably New York’s best defender after Mitchell Robinson went down.
The only question for Grimes is: will his efficiency slip if his usage increases? I don’t think that will be the case because his attack approach always leaves multiple options. He doesn’t drive into traffic without a finishing option or a passing option. He shoots against closeouts, but it never feels forced. As the top-three options cool off, I’d like to see Grimes get more chances to attack. The sophomore gets a 3 out of 5 for a clear positive impact.
RJ Barrett: 21 PTS (9/21 FG, 0/4 3PT, 3/4 FT), 2 AST, 6 REB, 1 STL, 4 TO in 37 mins
We watched RJ Barrett play well for three quarters before tanking his efficiency late again. Barrett’s touch around the basket was genuinely impressive, as he attacked defenders and showed patient footwork to get his shot off comfortably. But the rising prospect couldn’t hit a jump shot and struggled at the rim once Washington sent extra help. Nevertheless, with everyone struggling, RJ continued attacking even after going cold.
Barrett’s defense has been a problem for most of this season. He’d worked closer to average for a while there, but recent match-ups against bigger players have hurt him. This is the second time that RJ has battled even to contain Kyle Kuzma. RJ gives space to ball handlers, but that means big players with handles can get to their spots and take advantage of their size.
Barrett’s giving signs of growth but makes a handful of mistakes a night that drags him back closer to the mean. He’s shown more poise against single coverage, and this is the first season that he consistently punishes smaller match-ups. But until he gets everything to work simultaneously, including defense, he’s taking baby steps instead of a leap. Barrett gets a 3 out of 5 for keeping New York close early.
Julius Randle: 14 PTS (6/17 FG, 0/5 3PT, 2/5 FT), 4 AST, 16 REB, 1 STL, 2 TO in 34 mins
Julius Randle had a nightmare of a game. He shot miserably from range, and it carried over to the free-throw line. Most of his field goals came in garbage time, and a last-second dunk kept him from his lowest first-half score of the season. We might expect him to follow a 6-point half with a better effort in the second, but he didn’t seem to have the legs.
Randle’s best work came on the glass. That’s hardly a surprise, as he’s grabbed 15 boards or more in 6 consecutive games. But his rebounding was even more critical with Mitchell Robinson out. Washington had occasions of outworking the Knicks for more than one offensive board in a single possession. But Randle countered that until New York went small.
I’ll give Randle credit for not forcing too much. He struggled but let Brunson and Barrett handle more possessions in the process. Part of Randle’s success this year has been that he can share the ball on off nights instead of shooting his efficiency into oblivion. The big man gets a 2 out of 5 for failure to provide scoring help, but I respect his effort on the glass.
Mitchell Robinson:0 PTS (0/0 FG, 0/4 FT), 2 REB, 2 STL, 2 BLK in 9 mins
Mitchell Robinson seemed ready for a productive day. His length produced 2 blocks and steals in the span of his first quarter minutes. The big man also drew two fouls but missed all go free throw attempts. Unfortunately, Mitch suffered a thumb sprain from a loose ball in traffic. His presence was sorely missed.
A pair of solid contributions off the Knicks’ bench
Miles McBride: 0 PTS (0/2 FG, 0/1 3PT), 1 AST, 2 REB, 1 STL in 11 mins
Deuce McBride gave us a moment on offense. He waved off IQ and called for a pick-and-roll with Jericho Sims before delivering an alley-oop pass to the rolling center. But he was quiet for the rest of his 11 minutes of action and failed to convert a field goal attempt.
Immanuel Quickley: 18 PTS (6/13 FG, 2/6 3PT, 4/4 FT), 5 REB, 1 STL, 1 TO in 31 mins
In the fourth quarter, that is when Immanuel Quickley turned in most of his scoring, including a pair of and-ones and a three. IQ’s burst of points got the Knicks within single digits before Washington called timeout and got going again. The sixth man’s most notable weapon was his floater, which was as potent as we’ve seen in a long time.
By settling into a scoring role, Quickley gave up his playmaking edge. He’s left games without an assist on five occasions in 46 games, but it’s happened in the past two games. I like IQ the scorer, but he needs to be paired with a playmaker if that’s the case. The second unit needs someone to set them up, which is apparent when we look at their low-attempt tallies.
But I’m not about to blame Quickley for giving the bench its only scoring presence. He played his best basketball when he decided to take over. He can give New York an offensive punch, but I’d move him off-ball more if that’s all he’s focused on. Quickley gets a 3 out of 5 for a solid night from the field.
Obi Toppin: 0 PTS (0/1 FG), 5 REB in 14 mins
Obi Toppin’s minutes increased, but his offensive impact didn’t. He rarely ventured far from his typical perch in a corner. It’s rare that Obi doesn’t stand out in transition, but he never outran opponents. Toppin’s typical energy boost wasn’t there.
To Obi’s credit, he grabbed rebounds well. His lack of transition runs may relate to extra effort on the defensive glass. But he has to provide more than a few rebounds to help the second unit. Toppin gets a 1.5 out of 5 for his tired performance.
Isaiah Hartenstein: 4 PTS (2/6 FG), 4 REB in 13 mins
Despite Mitchell Robinson’s injury, Isaiah Hartenstein only played for 13 minutes. That’s a testament to his struggles in this game. Hart grabbed just one defensive rebound in all of his time on the floor. He continually missed his floater attempts and managed just 4 points on 6 shots from the field. That’s awful efficiency for a center.
Hartenstein’s defense wasn’t good, either. Robinson’s injury created an opportunity to step up, but Hart failed to respond. As a result, he gets a 0.5 out of 5 for a rough performance.
Jericho Sims: 2 PTS (1/2 FG), 2 AST, 4 REB, 2 BLK in 21 mins
Jericho Sims overtook Isaiah Hartenstein for the Center role by the end of this game. I doubt that will stick going forward, but I blame Thibodeau’s stubbornness for that. Sims looked like an impact player, with some beautiful blocks and hard work on the inside.
There’s still a lot that Sims can work on, such as positioning for rebounds. But his athleticism helps him cover defensive warts that Hartenstein can’t. New York’s rim protection felt much stronger while Sims was out there. The sophomore center gets a 2 out of 5, which could increase with more minutes.
The short rotation shows its flaws for Tom Thibodeau
This game was the perfect example of problems with Tom Thibodeau’s distribution of minutes. Fred Katz pointed out that Julius Randle and Jalen Brunson have played the most and third-most minutes in the league since December 21st, respectively. They played 80 minutes and 85 minutes in the back-to-back earlier this week; it showed when they didn’t have an extra gear to lead New York past Washington.
I could understand the sense of urgency if New York was in the thick of a race for home-court advantage or a top seed. But Thibodeau’s players look exhausted before the Allstar break, and their reward is a play-in tournament slot. A partial resason is because they’ve had a few of these letdowns against weaker opponents when fatigue has been the deciding factor.
Thibodeau gets a 1.5 out of 5, with the slight boost, thanks to not playing anyone over 40 minutes this time.
Closing Thoughts
The Knicks feel like a team close to turning a corner but also one that needs a change. They’re putting too much on the shoulders of a handful of players without enough trust in the supporting parts. That creates an unsustainable pattern that I don’t expect to change until Leon Rose steps in to change the roster.
That’s a bigger indictment than it might seem. Leon Rose and Tom Thibodeau have had this franchise for three years and still don’t seem to be on the same page. Nothing proves it more than the recent rumor that New York is trying to trade Cam Reddish for Reggie Bullock and a second-round pick.
For those keeping scores, Rose let Bullock walk to sign Evan Fournier. Then he traded a first for Cam Reddish. Now he may trade Cam for a lesser draft pick and get back a player he could have signed outright. Nothing says “disjointed” quite like that trade rumor.
New York plays Atlanta next, and the Hawks are on a four game winning streak. Hopefully, the Knicks are fired up after the brutal loss and better rested. We can see how their energy looks and what direction the team is moving from there. I’ll see you then, Knicks fam!
