For the first time in three years, the New York Knicks won both sides of a back-to-back after beating the Orlando Magic 91-84.

The Knicks showed some signs of fatigue, but they were able to overcome tired legs with sheer effort. This was especially true on the defensive end. It wasn’t a pretty game, but the Knicks pulled through by outworking their opponents. That’s the kind of victory that New Yorkers can appreciate – hard fought from start to finish.

While the game was generally ugly, there were some standout moments from key players. RJ Barrett was a force throughout the game with other starters providing enough support to protect the lead. The bench was missing in action with the exception of Immanuel Quickley. This was a lunch pail win, sacrificing efficiency for the grind. But the Knicks were able to come out on top despite a late from Orlando. Let’s see who how the players held up.

The Starters do it all for New York

Elfrid Payton: I’d categorize Elfrid Payton’s recent play as simply “okay.” That’s hardly enough for a rabid fanbase that just watched Immanuel Quickley go off in three straight games. But it was crucial to the win against Orlando. Payton had a mostly forgettable performance but made some important baskets in the second half when tired legs meant long scoring droughts. Quickley struggled with pressure in the fourth quarter. That gave New York’s starting point guard a chance to flash his value as a ball handler. We also got one of a handful of recent dunks from the Knicks’ veteran point guard which is unexpected but nice to see.

Payton put up 12 points, 4 assists, 2 rebounds and 2 steals with 1 turnover in 33 minutes. He shot 6/11 from the field. It’s not exactly a good thing that Payton didn’t even attempt a three pointer, but at least he didn’t miss any. The offensive play was steady, solid and efficient from New York’s starting point guard. More importantly, Payton had a strong performance defensively. He held Orlando’s rookie PG, Cole Anthony, in check throughout the game.

Payton grabs a 2.5 out of 5 for solid on-ball defense and some key makes. In a game where every single basket counted, Payton managed to pick his spots without disrupting anyone else’s rhythm. He earns some appreciation for stepping in when the offense stagnated for his rookie back-up. Immanuel Quickley is a fast ascending prospect, but Elfrid Payton can afford the rookie some growing pains without the price of losing.

Reggie Bullock: While he may not have shot well, Reggie Bullock had himself a solid performance. A dog fight of a game is always one to illuminate the finer points in Bullock’s approach. While he might not be a shut down defender, you can catch Reggie poking the ball from behind a ball handler or helping just enough to disrupt a drive. Bullock also moved the ball more freely and in turn moved well without it. It meant his defenders had to work and chase whenever they were on him.

Over 30 minutes of action, Bullock managed 13 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and a steal with 1 turnover. He shot 4/11 from the field, 2/8 from three and 3/3 from the free throw line. While the three ball didn’t fall at a great clip, the threat was there. Reggie used that threat to sneak past defenders and was able to finish inside a couple of times as a result. It was nice to see him work some two-man game of his own. He wasn’t relegated to a spot-up shooter in this one.

Bullock closes out the performance with a 2 out 5. While I commend the work that Bullock did, his game was still missing that something extra to take it up a notch. While this was far from a bad performance, it’s simply solid. He’ll need to add a couple more stand out moments, improve his efficiency or add a few box score tallies to pick up the score beyond average range. But his performances are picking up some momentum.

RJ Barrett: It felt like poetic justice that the game deciding play was a turnover created by RJ Barrett who would finish the fast break it sparked. Barrett was the Knicks’ most consistent weapon on the day, never far from making something happen. The Maple Mamba drove right at bigger defenders including Vucevic and Gordon. He used a combihttps://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gordoaa01.htmlnation of hesitations and tricky footwork to get shots off unbothered. While RJ didn’t hit any three pointers, we got more glimpses of a midrange jumper and his free throw shooting was perfect.

Barrett played 38 minutes, producing 22 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists to 3 turnovers and 1 block. He shot 9/19 from the field, 0/3 from three and 4/4 from the free throw line. He’s been more efficient as he gets inside. He’s settled less for long jumpers unless they’re wide open. The three pointers that RJ did take came in rhythm. The sophomore’s rebounding prowess brings an added bonus of allowing him to lead the transition offense. He’s in a nice a rhythm and it’s been reflected in efficient scoring for the past four games.

Barrett nets a 3.5 out of 5 for a performance where nobody else was as consistent. Whether the Magic got a quick push from Vucevic or Ross or anyone else, it felt like Barrett wouldn’t be far behind with a momentum changing basket. The cherry on top comes from his clutch play in the crucial moments of this game. The sophomore was a closer for this one, a nice bounce-back after Cleveland’s closing minutes.

Julius Randle: Nothing came easily to Julius Randle. The big man struggled to finish shots that he’s had no problem finishing in prior games. He missed free throws, jumpers and even some lay-ups. But Randle stayed true to his 2021 form by fighting on boards and showing up defensively. In the fourth quarter with less than two minutes left, you could catch the Knicks’ big rotating like a bat out of hell to deny Terrence Ross from getting an open look. Even without scoring efficiently, Julius gave the Knicks everything he had and managed to produce.

Randle played 39 minutes and accumulated 21 points, 17 rebounds, 1 assist and no turnovers. He shot 5/19 from the field, 2/6 from three and 9/13 from the free throw line. It looked like a tired legs performance. He still got to his spots and generated the looks that he likes, but Randle couldn’t cash them in. The low assist total is a combination of a few frustration forces and a lot of missed shots from other seemingly fatigued teammates. Kickouts were not leading to many assists in this one. Despite his tired legs though, Randle willed baskets in at key moments including a go-ahead bucket out of a timeout late.

The ridiculous rebounding total helps boost Julius Randle’s performance to a 3 out of 5. Randle didn’t have his A-game but he made big plays when it mattered. Other players took advantage of the attention Randle draws. Payton and Bullock both got buckets from give and goes through Randle as help defenders wouldn’t cheat far off the big man. We’ve hit a point where even a “bad” game for Randle is a net positive for the team.

Mitchell Robinson: Despite clearly playing hurt, Mitchell Robinson anchored the defense and grabbed double-digit rebounds. The shot blocker had trouble with his individual match-up against Nikola Vucevic, but most of that damage came from Orlando’s big man taking jumpers. Mitch was still a clear presence inside, deterring Magic players even from point blank range. The big man’s mobility was clearly hampered. He overcame those limitations and turned in another solid performance.

After 34 minutes of action, Robinson finished with 6 points, 10 rebounds, 1 block and 1 steal. He shot 2/5 from the field and 2/6 from the free throw line. The misses were on absolute bunnies. These were shots that Mitch typically slams home without issue. The free throw misses are more of a concern. Robinson hasn’t shot well from the charity stripe so far. That’s a point of improvement where he could easily pick-up a few easy points nightly.

Mitch finishes with a 2.5 out of 5. While the big man was obviously hampered by leg issues, that meant Vucevic knocking down jumper after jumper. Orlando’s big man also won the rebounding battle. I’m not sure how much of that bit was the injury. Robinson has always struggled with stronger bigs and Vucevic fits that bill. Still, this wasn’t a bad game and Robinson had a positive impact. But let’s be mindful of his match-ups with stronger big men going forward.

The Knicks bench struggles in short minutes

Immanuel Quickley: It was a tale of two halves for Immanuel Quickley. The rookie point guard put on a show in the first half by knocking down floaters from different angles and distances. IQ took threes when he had room behind the arc. If defenders chased him off the three-point line, then he’d launch the floater from any space inside of 16 feet. I got shades of Tony Parker from the frequency and efficacy of IQ’s floater in that second quarter. The second half was a different story though. The Magic put a bigger body on Quickley, James Ennis. Ennis pressured and the help defense was more aggressive in denying the floater. IQ struggled mightily to respond. The offense stagnated from there and didn’t get much going until Elfrid Payton came back in.

Quickley’s night was cut off at 15 minutes, but he still managed 11 points, 2 assists and 1 board. He shot 4/11 from the field, 1/3 from three and 2/2 from the free throw line. IQ commands attention, so much so that he was drawing doubles in the second half. The rookie needs to build experience to respond to the different looks that come his way. A bigger body gave him trouble along with heavy pressure. We’ve seen more than enough to know that the rookie can adjust and find ways to be productive. He’s also shown instant chemistry with lottery pick Obi Toppin.

Quickley nets a 2 out of 5 for his strong first half but rough second. While I’d like to see more of the rookie than fifteen minutes, Thibs quick switch back to Payton may have preserved the victory. Even so, from the floaters to the lobs, IQ brings tools to the table that no one else has this season. He may not be ready to shoulder the load of leading an NBA offense against everything defenses can throw at him yet. He’ll get there though. I’d like to see Quickley and Payton’s roles reversed. I think we’re heading in that direction. This was just a tough game for IQ late, hence the shortened minutes. But even in the tough one, we’re seeing more of the rookie with the starters for brief spells.

Austin Rivers: Tom Thibodeau didn’t get much help from Austin Rivers against the Magic. Rivers never got an offense going. He was held without a made field goal. There were moments where I felt the combo guard was passing on shots he would have taken earlier. It may have been tired legs. Maybe recent shooting struggles have turned into some hesitance. Either way the only moment I recall for Rivers in this game was a drawn foul on a broken play in the fourth quarter.

Rivers spent 18 minutes on 2 points, 5 rebounds and 1 assist. He went 0/4 from the field, 0/1 from three and 2/4 from the free throw line. Something’s off when the combo guard can’t even make his free throws. I do appreciate the boost in the rebounds column though. Rivers also had some nice defensive stands on-ball.

The struggles leave Rivers with a 1.5 out of 5. The Knicks look to Austin Rivers for points first and foremost. They can’t hang against better teams without that contribution. IQ needed a pressure release across the floor that Rivers typically provides. Without that help, the rookie floundered late. So the combo guard didn’t provide the production typical for his role.

Obi Toppin: Obi Toppin still isn’t seeing extended minutes. The rookie got just 9 minutes to deliver and a chunk of that came when the offense couldn’t even situate itself in the fourth. The big did find time to fly for a dunk and attempt a couple of three pointers though.

No score for Obi in this one. I’m not sure how to feel about how much of his game has been moved to the perimeter. The Knicks will need him to develop a strong face up game and some range, but it’s far from his bread and butter. The good news is that Randle’s emergence can afford Obi time to work on that aspect of his game. The bad news is that Toppin isn’t getting to show us his best tools with any consistency.

Kevin Knox: We got a return to Earth from Kevin Knox, who got good looks in a rare off shooting game. Knox saw his minutes trimmed and was unable to make much of the touches he got. He went 0/3 from three and 0/4 from the field with just 2 points to show in 10 minutes. I won’t harp on the poor performance, because we’ve seen Knox go quiet for a half but erupt after. He wasn’t afforded the time or consistent touches to get into a rhythm.

No score for Knox here, ten minutes simply isn’t enough time for a fair evaluation. He didn’t kill the team while he was playing but did nothing to help. I hope this doesn’t become a pattern where slow starts lead to miniscule opportunities later.

Nerlens Noel: There wasn’t a whole lot of time for Nerlens Noel to work, but he continued to trend as a perfect compliment behind Mitchell Robinson. The big man is picking up blocks and steals frequently while he’s on the floor. Teams can’t build offensive momentum when Robinson leaves the floor because a second defensive anchor follows.

Noel played just 14 minutes and didn’t score, but he managed 4 rebounds, 1 steal and 2 blocks in the limited time out there. There’s not much to say about the performance except that if you’ve seen Noel play this season, then you’ve got a good idea about how this went. The Knicks don’t lose much of anything on defense, but Noel doesn’t have the same rim running gravity that we see from Mitch.

On the day, Noel’s limited to a 2 out of 5. He didn’t provide anything to drive this performance above “average for a back-up” territory. That said, his presence and the value it adds is all about defense. Basketball is a momentum sport, especially in the three-point era where a few possessions can lead to a double-digit swing in score. Noel gives the Knicks the luxury of two defensive anchors inside that allow for aggressive perimeter defense from everyone else.

Coaching and Closing, the difference is the effort

Tom Thibodeau: The New York Knicks busted their humps for two matinee games in a row. I realize that might not sound like much, but anyone who has ever bought discount tickets to a Sunday afternoon game understands. The midday effort from these Knicks was a reflection of culture improving. They just smacked down a very good Celtics team and followed it by shutting down the Magic. Do I believe the defense is as good as these two performances? Probably not. But the intensity that the Knicks brought was a Tom Thibodeau special.

In terms of in-game decisions, it’s hard for me to fault Thibs for sticking with his vets. Knox and Obi shot poorly and Quickley struggled in the fourth quarter. If I have a complaint, I’d have liked to see the second unit get in earlier in the third quarter. That’s small fries though, especially when the Knicks won the game. They ought to have won by a more comfortable margin, but that falls on free throw shooting moreso than anything Thibs could have changed.

I’m leaving the Knicks’ coach with a 2.5 out of 5 for this victory. He gets extra credit for the team effort but not enough to propel his score above an average level performance. That’s because the Magic are a depleted team and the Knicks couldn’t break the game open enough to rest starters. New York needs to get some easier wins, the types where players can rest. Thibs can’t ride 40-minute performances from key players for all 72 games, something’s going to give.

Closing Thoughts: So the Knicks follow a 5-game skid by winning two in a row. They managed to do that with such prowess that New York’s defense ranks among the elite statistically. More importantly, the Knicks are a win away from .500 again. That’s no small feat. Our Knicks have faced one of the toughest schedules in the league at a grueling pace. If New York continues to weather the storm then playoff hopes might really be around the corner as the schedule softens up a bit. Health is the great equalizer this season though, so only time will tell.

The Knicks needed these wins and played like it. They weren’t a team with fresh legs or some major addition that made life easier. This was a tired group of players that refused to let another team outwork them after losing 5 straight. I think that’s been the most endearing part of these Knicks. When nothing comes easy, you can rest assured that everything has been earned. If New York were to ride this wave and grant fans a playoff berth, they’d have fought and scratched and bled their way to it.

I’ll close this one with a big smile and a hope that a Western Conference trip doesn’t deflate the team or derail momentum. We’ll find out in just a couple of days.

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