Cardiac Knicks was on full display as the New York Knicks took down the Chicago Bulls with a score of 104-103 with a fourth-quarter meltdown.
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The New York Knicks dodged a bullet, beating the Chicago Bulls 104 to 103. The Knicks outplayed their Eastern Conference leading foe for the better part of four quarters before nearly choking away a 13-point lead in the last two minutes. They moved the ball well, hit their shots, and played tough defense right up until it was time to close. The Bulls nearly stormed back as New York tightened up and forced isolation when it was time to kill the clock. They managed to hold on for a win, but closing is a work in progress.
Julius Randle was under constant pressure, but the added attention he drew created space for RJ Barrett and Kemba Walker to breakout. Derrick Rose and Taj Gibson returned to Chicago with quality performances to pick up struggling shooters off the bench. The Knicks put together a fantastic performance, before almost coming unglued and hanging on late. Let’s see how it all went down.
Walker and Barrett step up for the Knicks’ starters:
Kemba Walker: Kemba Walker was lights out for the second straight game. The Bulls sent constant double-teams at Julius Randle, and Walker took advantage of the extra space all game. The new starting point guard led New York in scoring and has knocked down 10 three-pointers in the last two games. He was a terror off the ball, sneaking away from his defenders whenever they cheated toward the middle.
Kemba finished 29 minutes with 21 points, 2 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, and 1 turnover. He shot 7/12 from the field, 5/6 from three, and 2/3 from the free throw line. Walker couldn’t miss at range and kept finding space as Randle drew the lion’s share of attention. Kemba also played the passing lanes really well, taking on a disruptive role defensively. On the negative side, he does seem a step slower than his prime. Kemba got the step on defenders at times but couldn’t separate enough to finish.
This game really showed the value of acquiring Walker. The Bulls determined not to let Julius Randle score, and that was typically enough to beat the Knicks last season. But Walker helped power the Knicks to a double-digit lead for a big chunk of the second half. The former all-star can force a pick-your-poison scenario as a ball-handler or floor spacer. He gets a 4 out of 5 for a great night.
Evan Fournier: This was Evan Fournier’s first bad night of the season. He had enough space to shoot often but failed to capitalize. Outside of back-to-back three’s from the baseline, Fournier couldn’t buy anything from long range. He also had an inconsistent defensive game, giving up some backdoor cuts and pull-up jumpers to the Bulls’ talented wings. He had moments on defense but made his share of mistakes.
Fournier played 33 minutes and finished with 10 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, and 1 turnover. He shot 4/14 from the field and 2/8 from three. He couldn’t get his jumper going which made it tougher to get separation off the dribble. This is due to the fact that the Bulls have a lot of long, athletic wings which gave the Knicks’ wing fits on both ends.
This wasn’t Evan Fournier’s night. He struggled from the field and was uneven defensively. The new acquisition had a tough match-up whether guarding Lavine or Derozan. He never found his rhythm despite getting the space that he typically takes advantage of. I wouldn’t worry too much about a rough night, but it was an especially tough performance for Fournier. He comes away with a 1.5 out of 5 for his struggles.
RJ Barrett: RJ Barrett stepped up, right when the Knicks needed it. With leading scorers Julius Randle and Evan Fournier both struggling, Barrett added a necessary scoring punch.
I forgot how much better Barrett is when he receives the ball in motion. He doesn’t have a great first step but can make up for it by receiving the ball with momentum toward the basket. RJ scored inside frequently in transition and cutting inside from the baseline. He finally broke his scoring slump.
The third-year prospect played 33 minutes, managing 20 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 turnover. He played tough man-to-man defense but got caught doubling off Lavine a few times. He also gave up backdoor cuts getting drawn to the middle, which is a noteworthy bad habit. But even with some mishaps, Barrett’s defense was good overall. He closed the game by shutting down Demar Derozan on the would-be game-winner.
This was far and away RJ Barrett’s best performance of the early season. He found his aggression by going to the basket with force. Barrett might have been looking to playmake too often in previous games. He was much more decisive against Chicago, powering through defenders frequently for finishes. So he dropped 20 points, played good defense, and finished with a clutch stop to win. RJ gets a 4.5 out of 5 and was my pick for player of the game.
Julius Randle: Just when it feels like Julius Randle has turned a corner, he has a closing two minutes that take some of the shine off. The Bulls used guards to try and disrupt Randles dribble, instead of having big bodies slow him down. They sent aggressive double-teams to help those guards and it effectively forced Randle to make quick decisions. But note that I said quick and not rushed. Against the Hawks in the playoffs, Randle rushed decisions…not this time.
Randle played 35 minutes and put up 11 points, 9 assists, 16 rebounds, 1 steal, and 4 turnovers. He shot 3/11 from the field, 0/2 from three, and 7/10 from the line. He was wide open for both threes but missed.
The Bulls didn’t let him get into a scoring rhythm. Instead, Randle had to rely on teammates and he showed plenty of trust. The big man drew his double teams and made quick passes to open shooters all game long…until the final two minutes. Randle’s clock-kill consisted of post-ups and bad shot attempts that took away from an otherwise great night.
Randle’s decision-making right at the end of the game fell apart. He had a chance to kill the clock on an offensive rebound but missed a putback instead. He also let Lonzo Ball frustrate his offense and forced some bad shots. That said, he spent most of the game showing off a much-improved response to double-teams. His passing was brilliant for most of the night and helped get both Kemba and RJ going. Randle gets a 3 out of 5, which would have been higher with better late-game execution.
Mitchell Robinson: As an encore to shutting down Joel Embiid, Mitchell Robinson faced another giant of a challenge in Nikola Vucevic. Mitch wasn’t quite as successful with this match-up but his impact was still positive. The third-year big made life hard for Vuc in a manner that even Taj Gibson couldn’t match. Robinson also worked the boards and did some damage from the dunkers spot on multiple possessions.
The Knicks’ shot-blocker played 29 minutes and managed 9 points, 6 boards, 2 blocks, and a turnover. He was 4/4 from the field, 1/2 from the charity stripe, and his single turnover came on a three-second violation that was more on Randle for getting trapped. Robinson’s rebound total may seem underwhelming, but he kept Vucevic at bay and below 10 rebounds which is an accomplishment unto itself. The added bulk has paid dividends for a second straight match-up with a top offensive big man.
It wouldn’t be a Mitchell Robinson performance without him giving us a scare. Robinson had a sneaker blow out and appeared to turn his ankle. He went to the locker room to the horror of Knicks fans everywhere. But the big man returned with a new pair of kicks and checked in just in time to grab a clutch offensive board. These momentary falls are giving me heart palpitations and showing how valuable Mitch is. I’m not sure where the defense would be without its elite defensive big. Robinson gets a 3 out of 5.
Rose and Taj impress off the Knicks bench:
Derrick Rose: Derrick Rose continued to be the foundation for a successful second unit. No other bench player scored more than 6 points while Rose hit double-digits. While the other bench ball handlers struggled against Chicago’s aggressive defenders, Rose sliced them up and got inside for buckets. He didn’t get space to show off his three-point shot, but Rose punished defenders for chasing him off the line anyway.
Rose played 19 minutes and tallied 12 points, 4 rebounds, and 1 assist. He shot 5/10 from the field, 1/3 from three, and 1/1 from the free throw line. The bench needed a consistent scorer, and Rose stepped up where the shooters were widely shut down. He was able to rest early because Kemba Walker was also going off. Otherwise, Rose seemed like he could give another 10 quality minutes if needed.
Rose has remarkable chemistry with the second unit. Even with both wings struggling, the sixth man of the year candidate kept the second unit’s offense effective for most of the game. That bench crew slowed down in the second half, but not enough to break the momentum. They seem to keep pressing for fourth-quarter Burks to get going, which slows Rose down in the process. Even with the drop-off, Rose was good enough to warrant a 3 out of 5 for his performance.
Immanuel Quickley: Immanuel Quickley knocked down a really nice floater early in the game, and that was it for his offense. He once again clocked in below the 15-minute threshold for my expanded breakdowns and it was warranted because IQ hasn’t found his rhythm yet.
In 13 minutes, Quickley hoisted 7 shots and only made that one floater while missing all 4 of his three-point attempts. So in the end he finished with 2 points, 1 steal, and 3 rebounds.
It took time for the three-guard crew to gel last season for that second unit. We’re seeing the same this year as both IQ and Burks try to get going with neither shooting as well as they did last year. We’ll see if they can get things going.
Alec Burks: Burks marked 17 minutes with 6 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, and 3 turnovers. He also shot 2/6 from the field and 2/3 from three. Yet it felt like Alec Burks had a worse game than his numbers even suggest (his turnovers are probably the reason for the frustrating outlook).
Burks knocked down a couple of jumpers and played respectable defense, but missed more shots than he made and wasted a few possessions. He never got going off the dribble, failing to get score inside or create for others. Instead, Burks dribbled seconds off the shot clock before resetting to the next ballhandler who was forced to make a rushed decision.
He also struggled to inbound the ball during the closing possessions of the game, but a part of that falls on Thibodeau for drawing up the plays without much movement or screening. There were flashes of production but the scorer never stacked his positive possessions. The Bulls’ length and athleticism caused most of New York’s wings trouble and that includes Burks.
Burks and IQ combined for 8 points on 3/13 from the field. They split possessions reasonably well, but neither player produced with his touches. The hot hand usually takes the lion’s share of possessions so an even split tends to be a bad sign. But there was no hot hand, just a lot of aimlessness.
The fourth quarter demon does seem to take a while to find his rhythm when he comes back from hiatuses. Whether that’s the offseason or injuries. However, I’m still not concerned about early struggles because the second unit is winning their match-ups, but Alec Burks clocks just 1.5 out of 5 thanks to the turnovers on top of his shooting woes.
Obi Toppin: Obi Toppin quietly compiled a 5 point, 1 rebound, 1 assist, and 1 block night off 2/2 shooting and 1/1 from the charity stripe in his limited minutes. But I wanted to see more of Toppin than the 13 minutes he got against Chicago because his motor and effort against a smaller team could’ve been utilized, especially on the defensive end too.
Regardless, in his limited minutes, we saw Obi outrun Lonzo Ball to create a transition bucket out of nothing. We also got a two-man play between Obi and IQ.
Obi has shown us plenty of flashes but needs more minutes to give us a complete game.
Taj Gibson: Chicago fans are probably used to seeing Taj Gibson do this. But once again, Gibson came in the game and just did the dirty work. He finished a few inside, grabbed his share of rebounds, and altered a number of shots inside the arc.
Taj would finish 3/4 from the field and tally 6 points, 6 boards, 3 blocks, and 1 turnover in his 19 minutes. But it was Gibson’s interior presence that gave a much-needed boost to New York’s struggling bench. The only kink in the armor that we saw was Vucevic being a bit too big for Taj to guard consistently.
There were multiple occasions where Bulls players were late getting back on defense because they complained to the refs about Taj Gibson’s physicality. He also set hard screens that kept his presence punishing on both ends of the floor. His numbers on paper don’t look particularly impressive but his physicality stood out. Gibson locks in a 2.5 out of 5 for a truly valuable contribution.
Late game execution needs to be addressed by Tom Thibodeau:
Tom Thibodeau: Tom Thibodeau’s night on the sidelines played out similar to Julius Randle’s. For most of regulation, he came up with smart adjustments to the tricky game plan and tweaks that Chicago threw his way. But the good vibes almost crashed in the last couple of minutes when New York’s execution slowed to a halt. Thibs saved two timeouts throughout that stretch, and I think that was one too many. He should have called everyone in and drawn up a play that did anything other than isolating Randle in a post-up. But all’s well that ends well I suppose.
There were some pretty cool wrinkles in this game that popped up once in response to Chicago’s attack. A few times, I caught off-ball defenders switching to get the right help defender in position against screens. Thibs’ gameplan also focused on downhill attacks. The Knicks took advantage of Chicago’s poor interior defense to score easily in the paint and create openings for shooters. A big part of the late slowdown was that post-up isolations failed to create the same openings that slashing ball-handlers captured.
This one was a mixed bag, with 45 good minutes and maybe 3 minutes of choices I’d question. Thibodeau lets his players learn through their mistakes, and that almost proved costly. But New York has dodged a couple of bullets with Boston and Chicago now. The fourth-quarter slowdown proved costly in their sole loss to Orlando.
Coach Thibs ought to have plenty of film to point out how much things are going sideways after New York outplays opponents for most of regulation. Just like his players, Thibodeau could be better at the close of games. He gets a 2.5 out of 5 for another statement win, but an unnecessary nail-biter.
Closing Thoughts:
Sometimes I wonder if the Knicks do this to us on purpose. They just can’t accept a dominant performance and have to make things harder than they should be. New York’s propensity for letting up late has made for some incredible games…and stress, lots of stress.
The frustrating part is that bleeding double-digit leads down until games are on the brink has taken away from an important consideration. The Knicks have outplayed the Celtics, Sixers, and Bulls for the vast majority of their shared time on the court. Those are very good teams and New York has simply been better.
But it’s hard to claim a big gap between competitors when two of those games came down to RJ Barrett needing a stop. I’ve got a 5-game sample to work with and it’s hard to claim that the 4-1 Knicks look even better than their results. But they do.
Watch those games back and it feels like they’ll waltz past the finish-line with ease…until they don’t. Maybe fatigue is a factor, maybe it’s mental, but the Knicks are on the verge of looking dominant. They just have to start putting teams away so that there’s no room for doubt in the results.
The tight contests do have an added benefit beyond taking us to the brink of insanity before ecstatic catharsis sets in…It feels like rivalries are brewing.
I expect Boston and Chicago to come back with a vengeance next time and New York will need even better execution to keep winning. They can work on the execution next in New Orleans. The Pelicans almost surprised the Hawks recently, there’s no such thing as an easy win in this league. So the Knicks will need to show up and not let another letdown happen like they did against the Magic. Let’s see how they follow a hard-fought victory on Saturday. I’ll see you then Knicks fam!
Stay tuned to KnicksFanTV.com for the latest Knicks news, rumors, and recaps throughout the 2021-22 season! And in case you missed it, check out CP from KFTV and Jake Brown from the New York Sports Podcast interview with the legendary John Starks.
