The New York Knicks lost to the Charlotte Hornets 105-122. The Knicks couldn’t maintain the 16-point lead because fatigue settled in.
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The New York Knicks entered this game to extend their win streak to ten, but they lost to the Charlotte Hornets 105 to 112. New York started the game slow, missing jumpers they’d usually make. Nevertheless, the team managed to stay ahead of Charlotte thanks to their strong defense before exploding on offense in the second quarter. But even as New York’s scoring picked up, their defense showed signs of slipping.
The Knicks entered the second half with a 16-point lead, but Charlotte fought back. The Hornets beat New York on the boards, grabbing offensive rebounds repeatedly, which helped cut their deficit. Charlotte got ahead in the third quarter, but the second unit responded to regain the lead going into the fourth quarter. The bench pushed the lead to 9 points before Charlotte fought back again. The starters returned but failed to convert enough buckets to keep up with the Hornets.
Ultimately, the team ran out of gas but fought to the final minute of action.
After a nine-game winning streak and fresh off a double-OT win over the Boston Celtics (a top-three team in the league), this loss feels forgivable (also, this team couldn’t win every game). However, at the same time, this loss may be poor timing because New York begins a tough West Coast trip. But let’s take a look at the individual performances from this game.
New York’s starting line-up gets outworked in the second half
Immanuel Quickley: 14 PTS (5/16 FG, 3/10 3PT, 1/1 FT), 5 AST, 3 REB, 2 TO in 35 mins
It turns out Immanuel Quickley does get tired occasionally. He started the night ice cold, missing good looks in a scoreless first quarter. But he got going after that, knocking down a pair of threes plus an and-one in the second. IQ’s second-quarter scoring was the best he could provide, as he cooled off in the second half.
Quickley’s fatigue settled in as he missed open threes and fell a step behind on defense. IQ has played great defense on a nightly basis throughout the season. But he gave up a slew of open looks to Terry Rozier from three and gave up a few more baskets at the rim.
It’s tough to blame Quick after playing 55 brilliant minutes against the Celtics a couple of days ago. He got to his spots, and I expect those shots to fall on most nights. He managed 5 assists to compensate for some of his inefficiency but wound up with a 1.5 out of 5 for an understandably tough night.
Quentin Grimes: 12 PTS (3/8 FG, 2/7 3PT, 4/5 FT), 2 AST, 4 REB in 29 mins
Quentin Grimes looked for his jumper early with three attempts from beyond the arc. Despite only making one of those, he forced the Hornets to close out, setting up his quick first step for a pair of drive and dump-off passes to Mitch. On top of that, his lone shot in the paint was a beautiful transition layup to close the first half.
Grimes’ defense had one weakness early in the season: Guarding bigger-bodied wings. While he’s remedied that problem most nights, that wasn’t the case with Charlotte. The Hornets had Kelly Oubre and Gordon Hayward on the wings, who combined for 50 points on over 50 percent from the field. It’s not solely on Grimes to stop those guys, but his struggles stood out because he tends to slow down any wing he defends.
Grimes struggled from the field and didn’t play the same level of defense we’re used to. However, he still made a few impressive plays, particularly in light of the fatigue that everyone showed. His shooting has been up and down for a while, but I trust his defense will bounce back fairly soon. Grimes gets a 2.5 out of 5 for the night despite his challenges.
RJ Barrett: 27 PTS (10/24 FG, 1/7 3PT, 6/8 FT), 4 AST, 6 REB, 1 TO in 35 mins
RJ Barrett’s offense propelled the Knicks throughout the first half. He attacked the paint early and often, exploding in the second quarter with 13 points. That set the tone for New York’s offense, kicking things into gear after a slow start. He also made some crucial buckets in the second half but cooled off in general, including some critical misses in the clutch.
However, Barrett’s three-point shooting held him back. The Hornets began to play off him, taking away his efficacy at the rim late. In addition, they also took away his passing options to the bigs. For most of the first half, he found centers in the dunker’s spot, which wasn’t the case in the second half — he only had a single lob to Mitch then. His passing also felt one-dimensional because outside of finding bigs in the paint, he didn’t really kick out to the perimeter.
Box score watchers might look at 10 for 24 and assume Barrett had a bad game. But he kept New York’s offense afloat while the rest of the starters struggled. His labored shooting from three reflects the same fatigue we saw across the stat sheet, and he still managed more than 10 points higher than the next high-scorer for the Knicks. Barrett gave his team a shot; for that, he gets a team-high 3.5 out of 5 for his impact.
Julius Randle: 16 PTS (5/17 FG, 2/9 3PT, 4/6 FT), 3 AST, 8 REB, 2 TO in 35 mins
Julius Randle looked exhausted before the end of the Celtics game and looked the same way in this performance. Randle started on an upbeat note, knocking down his first three, but it was downhill from there. His jumper was off, and the off-balance midrange takes that he uses rimmed out. The team’s poor shooting also impacted the spacing, which meant fewer opportunities to attack the basket to find a rhythm.
Even Randle’s rebounding took a hit. That’s not to say he was terrible in the middle, adding 7 defensive rebounds and 8 overall. But when the Knicks needed a basket for momentum, Randle wasn’t able to force his way inside to get any putbacks, a trait that we’ve become accustomed towards. Typically, those plays require overpowering defenders, and Randle didn’t have the energy for that effort against Charlotte.
Randle rarely needs a break, but he looked worn down in this game. He still managed some respectable numbers on poor efficiency. These occasions are made to unleash Obi Toppin and get New York’s star some rest, but that didn’t happen. Thibodeau lives and dies by his favorite players, which can be detrimental to those players on off nights. Randle gets a 1.5 out of 5 for his struggles, but he gets the same pass I’m giving the entire roster.
Mitchell Robinson: 14 PTS (7/8 FG), 8 REB, 1 STL, 1 BLK, 2 TO in 32 mins
The Hornets didn’t have much of an answer to stop Mitchell Robinson because he had four dunks before halftime. The big man even turned a tipped shot attempt into a putback dunk that looked like an alley-oop. He could have done even more damage, but RJ Barrett threw a couple of passes off-target.
Robinson picked up some crucial extra possessions later in the matchup. But he wasn’t quite himself on the defensive glass. He still did a commendable job with box-outs and defensive rebounds, but he wasn’t dominant. As a result, Hornets bigs stole a few rebounds from him that I wouldn’t normally expect.
Mitch added a nice block in the second quarter and a big steal with the game within reach in crunch time. So, his impact remained impressive even though he wasn’t as dominant on the glass as usual. In the end, he gets a 3 out of 5 for the strong performance.
The Knicks second unit should have gotten more minutes
Miles McBride: 7 PTS (3/5 FG, 1/2 3PT), 2 STL, 2 BLK in 13 mins
Miles McBride boosted the Knicks’ offense with 5 points to start the second quarter. He also provided another midrange bucket in his limited time in the fourth. But as typical, Deuce’s defense was even better than his offense, as he picked off passes and blocked players much taller than him. I’d love to see him rewarded with a couple more minutes, considering Quickley looked gassed.
Josh Hart: 10 PTS (3/5 FG, 1/1 3PT, 3/4 FT), 2 AST, 8 REB, 1 TO in 33 mins
Josh Hart’s one of the few regular rotation players that looked like his usual self. Translation: He chased after every rebound, scored in transition, and wreaked havoc on defense. His non-stop hustle kept things interesting and gave the second unit some extra juice.
That said, Hart’s game has limitations. He didn’t contribute much to the half-court offense beyond connecting passes. And while he didn’t force the issue, this may have been the night to assert himself more. But that complaint only makes sense because Hart played well whenever he attacked. The recent acquisition earns a 3 out of 5 for injecting life into a reasonably exhausted-seeming squad.
Obi Toppin: 3 PTS (1/4 FG, 1/4 3PT) in 13 mins
Obi Toppin had a quiet night, which is unfortunate because his teammates missed him on a few fast-break opportunities. His lone field goal was a momentum-shifting three near the end of the third. But that was the only shot attempt he took in rhythm. He had an excellent defensive play on Rozier in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough to see more minutes.
Isaiah Hartenstein: 2 PTS (1/2) FG, 2 AST, 2 REB, 1 BLK in 15 mins
Isaiah Hartenstein played solid basketball. He had some excellent passes and set solid screens that earned a couple of open looks on the roll. But his highlight of the night was denying Terry Rozier on a dunk attempt at the rim.
Unfortunately, Hartenstein’s minutes were cut short because Mitchell Robinson was a force inside. Nonetheless, the backup big man played his role, which is good enough for 2 out of 5.
Tom Thibodeau needs to trust his bench
The section title says it all. New York showed signs of fatigue from the opening tip, and only had one run in them. Jalen Brunson missed his second game, and the team has fought through a series of challenging opponents. If there were ever a time to ride the rested legs of young players like McBride or vets like Fournier, this was it. But Thibs was stubborn and let the game slip away to New York’s weakest opponent since its nine-game winning streak started.
I don’t have too much to add to that. I don’t think Thibodeau trusts the players out of his rotation enough, and it becomes harmful on nights like this. These games happen rarely enough that I’ll take all of Thibs’ positive attributes with the bad. But he gets a 1 out of 5 for failing to read the room.
Closing Thoughts
I don’t think this take faces any make-or-break stretches with their comfortable position in the standings. But the trip out West that’s looming has me nervous. These late-season road trips have been brutal in the past, and the Knicks look tired. They’ll play five playoff teams out of six opponents, and Charlotte just showed us that there are no pushovers in the NBA.
Momentum is vital in the NBA, whether we’re talking about a single game or patches of the schedule. A few losses can start a tailspin. But the Knicks have been great about maintaining a short memory after losing while riding hot hands through long stretches of success.
This trip across the country will put that to the test. New York can come away with the same energy we’ve seen since the nine-man rotation was introduced. Or we could see a backslide to the median. It starts with the Sacramento Kings, and I’ll be up late to keep track of the action. I’ll see you after the game, Knicks fam!
Stay tuned to KnicksFanTV.com for the latest Knicks news, rumors, and recaps throughout the NBA season. And in case you missed it, check out CP’s interview with Hall of Fame Broadcaster, Mike Breen!
