Knicks fall to Dallas Mavericks 124-128: No such thing as easy

The New York Knicks fell to the Dallas Mavericks 124-128. The Knicks battled from the second to the fourth quarter, but it was not enough.

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The New York Knicks dropped a road game to the Dallas Mavericks, 124 to 128, snapping their 5-game win streak. The Knicks coasted through most of their game against Portland and started the game in Dallas at a similar speed. Meanwhile, Dallas played spirited basketball immediately, with Kyrie Irving leading the way.

The Knicks trailed by 18 points after the first quarter and struggled to close that gap for most of the night. But despite trailing by as many as 18 points in the fourth quarter, New York still fought back to make it a 1-point game with a minute left. But the Mavs grabbed three consecutive offensive boards on the ensuing possession, which led to a three-pointer that put the game out of reach.

Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle took too long to kick into gear, while the Knicks failed to stop Kyrie Irving or Tim Hardaway Jr. The Knicks’ bench showed its weaknesses on a tough night. But worst of all, the Knicks got outworked. Let’s look at the performances to see what went wrong.

New York’s starters come out flat against Kyrie

Jalen Brunson: 30 PTS (10/22 FG, 2/6 3PT, 8/9 FT), 8 AST, 2 REB, 1 STL, 4 TO in 39 mins

Jalen Brunson seldom presses for offense and rarely loses his head. His first game back in Dallas is the first time I’ve seen him do both in the same game. The Mavericks pressured him all night and blitzed him with help often. He still got shots off but never found a proper rhythm from the field. 

Brunson had to work for everything he got. He turned the ball over four times thanks to tough on-ball pressure from every defender. The Knicks’ leader took a lot of contact that the refs could have called, but it seemed to rattle him this time.

Brunson still worked his tail off and managed to tally 30 points with a couple of meaningless late layups. His production looks well enough, but he had an off night that included a rare technical foul. Brunson gets a 2 out of 5 for a sloppy performance.

Donte DiVincenzo: 19 PTS (7/13 FG, 5/10 3PT), 3 AST, 4 REB, 2 STL, 2 TO in 30 mins

Donte DiVincenzo started the game hot. The Mavs applied extra pressure to Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle, which left the Big Ragu space to attack early and often. DiVincenzo launched 10 threes across the night and knocked down half of them.

DiVo made his usual contributions elsewhere. He grabbed some boards and played the tertiary playmaking role well. He didn’t step above his standards, but his average performance as a starter is acceptable.

DiVincenzo gave the Knicks a good performance. That wasn’t enough to pick up the team against Dallas’ hot shooting, but it didn’t hurt. He gets a 2.5 out of 5 for a nice game.

OG Anunoby: 10 PTS (4/10 FG, 1/6 3PT, 1/1 FT), 2 AST, 6 REB, 2 BLK, 1 TO in 39 mins

OG Anunoby picked a rough night to miss his jump shots. The Mavs did a decent job closing out on OG’s jumpers, but he also missed some open looks. Dallas also kept Anunoby from any comfortable touches inside the arc, where he shot 1/4. OG didn’t have much to give on offense.

Anunoby’s good defense ran into Kyrie Irving’s better offense. OG got a hand up on plenty of Kyrie’s attempts, but the contest made no difference. To make matters worse, Tom Thibodeau didn’t send double-team help until the fourth quarter. So, Anunoby was torched for more than 40 points.

The new Knick’s first five games had been a revelation. So, this tough night shouldn’t dampen enthusiasm for him. But we see that without his defense carrying his impact, he can fade into a more pedestrian-seeming player. OG gets a 1.5 out of 5 for failing to contain Kyrie.

Julius Randle: 32 PTS (12/23 FG, 2/7 3PT, 6/7 FT), 5 AST, 6 REB, 2 STL, 4 TO in 37 mins

Julius Randle started slow but picked things up in the second half. Randle struggled early on, forcing some shots in traffic and failing to find a rhythm. But he picked things up with a huge third quarter that helped New York find some momentum.

Randle’s hot second half ran into heavy double-teams from the Mavs. As soon as he got hot, Dallas forced him to get rid of the ball. That’s how he wound up with 4 turnovers. He warranted more assists, but OG and Brunson shot 3/12 from three.

Randle wasn’t bad, but Dallas ensured he couldn’t be great. By the end of the game, New York’s big star was forced to shoot threes because he’d face a crowd once he stepped inside the arc. Randle gets a 3 out of 5 for an efficient 30-point game.

Isaiah Hartenstein: 8 PTS (2/3 FG,4/4 FT), 4 AST, 15 REB, 1 STL in 32 mins

Isaiah Hartenstein’s night reminded me of some Mitchell Robinson games, where Robinson’s impact felt mitigated by a hot shooting opponent. I-Hart did his thing on the boards and challenged shots around the basket, but he couldn’t save the Knicks’ defense from a woeful night defending the three.

Hartenstein was the only consistent presence on the boards for New York. As long as he was near the rim or the loose ball didn’t travel far, big Hart grabbed it. He also chipped in some solid passing, notably a lead bounce pass to Deuce McBride off a give-and-go.

But Hartenstein couldn’t provide enough to pick up a slacking team. The Mavs out-muscled everyone else. It muted Hartenstein’s impact, even as his numbers looked great. I-Hart gets a 3 out of 5 on another solid performance.

The Knicks’ second unit’s lack of a ball-handler shows

Miles McBride: 5 PTS (2/5 FG, 1/4 3PT), 1 AST, 2 REB in 9 mins

Duece McBride looked aggressive early. He missed his first jumper but quickly came back to drain a three. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t knock down the rest of his jumpers. With Kyrie running amok, McBride barely got time to do anything before Brunson returned to the floor.

It’s impossible to blame or even rate Deuce when he gets less than 5 minutes per half. 

Quentin Grimes: 9 PTS (3/6 FG, 3/6 3PT, 0/2 FT), 3 AST in 15 mins

Quentin Grimes could have used more time. He looked confident in his three-ball, firing even over decent contests. He opened his ball-handling bag further, attacking off the dribble, which led to some nice assists to Achiuwa.

But Tom Thibodeau didn’t put enough faith in Grimes, especially while Josh Hart struggled. In a game where players’ efforts waned, and the deficit was significant, Grimes’ 3&D ability made plenty of sense for a more substantial workload. So, let’s all side-eye Tom Thibodeau again.

Grimes gets a 2.5 out of 5, with an impact capped by Tom Thibodeau’s substitutions.

Josh Hart: 4 PTS (1/4 FG, 0/3 3PT, 2/3 FT), 2 AST, 4 REB, 1 TO in 23 mins

Josh Hart wasn’t good. He couldn’t compete with the swarming Mavs defense, so he got shots off from three. He missed those shots and failed to hit his marks on assists or rebounds. Dallas’ frequent scoring also limited transition opportunities, which could have allowed Hart to create more.

Hart’s limitations as a ball-handler meant the second unit played hot potato too often. None of the Knicks’ bench could consistently attack the paint, and Hart’s impact suffered the most. He’s the main cog off the bench but couldn’t uplift the rest.

Hart’s entire game felt subpar. Even his effort level felt short of his usual performance as he watched some loose balls slip away. Hart gets a 1 out of 5 for a rough game whose mistakes stood out.

Precious Achiuwa: 7 PTS (3/3 FG, 1/2 FT), 6 REB, 1 STL, 2 TO in 16 mins

Precious Achiuwa had another game with an excellent effort but head-scratching mistakes. I cheered when he dove for a loose ball, then gasped as he threw a no-look past behind his head for a turnover. When I say no look, he never even looked behind himself and just flung the ball.

But Achiuwa showed promise as a switchable defender again. His agility looked helpful against a Mavericks squad with lots of mobility and physicality. So Precious continues to give us a mix of good moments and “What was that!?” Achiuwa gets a 2 out of 5.

Tom Thibodeau let’s Kyrie go off

The Knicks came out listless, and their passive approach trickled from the top. Kyrie Irving looked fired up from the opening tip and knocked down shots. He then knocked down more shots. Tom Thibodeau tried different defenders on Irving but didn’t bother to force the ball out of Kyrie’s hands with double-teams until it was too late.

Sometimes, I’ll give that kind of decision a pass. But the Mavs were playing without Luka Doncic, and I’d MUCH rather see Tim Hardaway have to create than watch Kyrie Irving run roughshod over the Knicks. This is a team loss, but it starts with Tom Thibodeau.

Closing Thoughts 

Talk about a deflating loss. The Knicks had walked all over five consecutive opponents. They seemed shell-shocked when the Mavericks matched their physicality and didn’t back down. It doesn’t help that the Mavs’ role-players shot way above their averages. Either way, I think losses like this are necessary sometimes.

Teams have to face adversity. They must be tested by overachieving opponents and sketchy referees’ whistles because it will sometimes happen. It’s better to take these lumps in January than when the playoffs start. Hopefully, this helps them find poise next time.

This is the second game in which teams forcefully took the ball out of Brunson and Randle’s hands. The rest of the team stepped up when Portland tried that. But it didn’t deter Dallas from daring the same players to beat them. I suspect that will happen often unless New York brings in a genuine third ball-handler. 

The Memphis Grizzlies are next, and they’re reeling from the loss of Ja Morant. After that, the Knicks have four winnable games at home. So don’t let this loss sap your enthusiasm too much. Let’s see if they get back on track and meet back here. I’ll see you after Memphis, Knicks fam!

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