The New York Knicks lose to the Washington Wizards 117-124. Kemba Walkers gets 44 points while Julius Randle and Evan Fournier are quiet.
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The New York Knicks squandered a spectacular night from Kemba Walker, coming up short against the Washington Wizards 117 to 124. After a competitive first quarter that left them down slightly, New York rode Walker’s 23-point second quarter to seven-point lead by halftime. But the third quarter of doom reared its ugly head and we saw the lead erased by familiar issues. New York tried to fight back in the fourth but another familiar problem popped up as they couldn’t get enough stops to mount a comeback.
The starting line-up was all about Kemba Walker’s fantastic play. The bench didn’t provide much help but an old face made some nice plays late and Jericho Sims looked like every bit the force that he’s been in prior appearances. New York was shorthanded against an extremely fresh team, and it showed. Let’s take a look at what went right and so much else that went wrong.
New York starts aggressive and doesn’t let up
Kemba Walker: 44 PTS (14/27 FG, 7/14 3PT, 9/9 FT), 8 AST, 9 REB in 43 mins
If it wasn’t for Kemba Walker, this game would have been a nightmare. While no one else could make shots with consistency, Walker was hitting everything. He knocked down three-pointers from every spot and situation imaginable. When Gafford was out, Kemba waltzed into the lane for some lovely finishes and clever kick-outs. Even his heat checks felt like they were bound to go in as Walker provided a pulse to a lifeless team.
The extra gear that Walker showed as a scorer was prevalent everywhere else too. His playmaking and rebounding both stood out. Walker’s assists don’t even tell the whole story because a lot of wide-open looks didn’t fall for the rest of the team. He generated opportunities for everyone, the most important of which was Julius Randle. Randle didn’t have a good game, but Walker got him the ball in motion toward the basket which we’ll discuss more below in the Randle section.
Before I wrap this up, I should mention that Walker’s defense wasn’t the issue behind New York’s nightmarish rotations. He didn’t do much to help, but you could catch Walker sprinting to his spots and at least challenging players. That’s more than I can say for Fournier and Randle, the two highest-paid Knicks. So Walker was incredible on offense and decent on defense. If the Knicks win, he’d get the first 5 out of 5 for a performance score all year, but instead, he grabs a 4.5 out of 5 for coming up just short.
Alec Burks: 20 PTS (6/16 FG, 4/9 3PT, 4/6 FT), 3 AST, 7 REB, 1 STL, 2 TO in 36 mins
The three-pointer finally came back for Alec Burks. Unfortunately, that didn’t save him from another sub-40 percent shooting night. Burks couldn’t get much going inside unless he drew whistles and even missed a couple of his free throws. The promising bit of his performance was that he took advantage of a number of wide-open looks generated by teammates.
The Wizards kept up with Burks off the dribble. Even when he managed to finish in the lane, his shots were contested and difficult. That took away one of Burks’ most reliable weapons and limited him to a catch-and-shoot threat. His game was lacking a certain bite that has propelled him even when the jumper fails.
Despite continued struggles from the field, Burks did manage to be productive. He added a few assists and grabbed his share of rebounds which we’re accustomed to at this point. The microwave scorer wasn’t great, but he was far from the problem for New York (we’re about to get into the problems next). Burks gets a 2.5 out of 5 for a solid and productive start, but with some blemishes.
Evan Fournier: 8 PTS (2/13 FG, 2/11 3PT, 2/2 FT), 1 AST, 3 REB, 1 STL in 38 mins
The Jekyll and Hyde season of Evan Fournier continues as he went from a streak of 20-point performances to a 2/13 nightmare game. Fournier started this one out as aggressive as his recent successes. He got into the lane and despite missing those shots, his big men reaped the benefits of Fournier’s gravity. But after a couple of misses and being stripped in the lane (it fell to Taj Gibson for two points), the French wing shelled up again and stuck to the perimeter.
The one-note offense from Fournier was predictable and easy to stop. He could barely buy a three-pointer when he was open and the Wizards often chased him off the simple catch and shoot. So Fournier would pump fake but refuse to drive. Instead, he did the side-step and shoot method that we’ve seen from him often and which is inconsistent at best. To make matters worse, the rest of his game fell apart, especially on defense.
Red Carpet was back, with Fournier’s defense looking like a catastrophe. He was beaten off the dribble by guards and big men alike. The big free-agent signing couldn’t get around screens and they were barely necessary since his effort was lacking regardless. The Wizards attacked him often, only switching things up when Julius Randle provided an equally easy target. The woeful night of 8 points on 13 tries and porous defense rates a 1 out of 5 on impact.
Julius Randle: 23 PTS (10/22 FG, 0/5 3PT, 3/4 FT), 2 AST, 9 REB, 1 BLK, 4 TO in 35 mins
Julius Randle’s performance was more frustrating than his boxscore suggests. His 0/5 from three came on the wide-open looks that he’s been failing to convert this season. The rest of his misses came from settling for shots at midrange instead. The makes are almost entirely from Randle refusing to settle and attacking the basket.
Therein lies the real frustration. Randle was fantastic when he got downhill and ball handlers were able to get him those opportunities on the roll. When he set his mind to attack the interior, Randle could get to his spots close enough for success but that took off-ball movement and work. The problem was that Randle rarely made the cuts or moves inside to get those easy looks, and instead he waited outside for the ball to take contested shots that bricked.
That’s actually not the worst part of the game for Randle. His defense was abysmal to the point that even the broadcast mentioned his low effort getting back from misses. The Knicks’ star would force a bad shot, hang his head after the miss, and completely blow a rotation on the opposite end of the floor. He got torched by a sophomore and some journeymen without an ounce of resistance besides one fast break block. Randle gets a 1 out of 5 for a game the Knicks could win if he shows just a little bit of effort on defense.
Mitchell Robinson: 8 PTS (4/4 FG), 3 REB, 1 TO in 25 mins
Mitchell Robinson’s night was a mixed bag thanks to foul trouble. Frequent fouls took a lot of the juice out of Mitch’s defensive presence. He was back to looking a step behind on plays, but I think that was caution rather than health. The big man was frequently complaining about the whistles he got and it neutered his rim protection.
But on the bright side, Mitch was still a live threat on the roll. That’s a development from recent games that hasn’t shown signs of letting up. He’s cutting hard to the basket and the other players have realized that he’s a free assist to anyone that can lob. It turns an otherwise limited player on offense into a weapon requiring attention.
But the dunks weren’t enough to buoy an otherwise tough night. The foul trouble didn’t just hurt Robinson’s ability to protect the basket. It took away the physicality that comes with his newfound bulk. Three rebounds in 25 minutes will never cut it, especially not with opponents waltzing inside for lay-ups. Mitch gets a 1.5 out of 5 for being handcuffed by the refs and unable to make up for it.
A gamechanging performance off the Knicks bench
Damyean Dotson: 4 PTS (2/4 FG, 0/1 3PT), 1 AST, 1 REB in 16 mins
There’s something bittersweet about getting to see Damyean Dotson back with the Knicks but also having him take minutes from Quentin Grimes. Let’s chalk it up to conditioning for now and give Dot some props for being game despite just arriving.
Dotson had a quiet night until making a couple of nice baskets in the fourth quarter. He showed patience with the rock, passing on decent looks to get inside for better opportunities. His night was fairly nondescript beyond that.
Dot’s clearly new to the team, his afterthought presence on most plays shows as much. But when he got touches, Dot did more good than bad. He was solid on defense as well. The best compliment I can give is that he looked like a genuine NBA player that can hold his own in legitimate minutes. Dotson gets a 2 out of 5 for some solid minutes off the bench.
Danuel House: 0 PTS (0/1 FG, 0/1 3PT) in 3 mins
The three minutes we got of Danuel House were essentially just for defense. He came in and played some tight defense, but didn’t have much time to do anything notable. His lone shot attempt was pretty ugly.
Taj Gibson: 2 PTS (1/2 FG), 1 AST, 3 REB in 7 mins
In one of the stranger rotation moves of the season, Tom Thibodeau played Taj Gibson as an oversized small forward next to Randle and Mitch (and then Randle and Sims). Bizarrely enough, this briefly got some results as Taj and Randle took turns picking on undersized mismatches. But then the Wizards started to use off-ball movement that the three bigs couldn’t keep up with. It cut Gibson’s night short.
Obi Toppin: 2 PTS (0/1 FG, 0/1 3PT, 2/2 FT), 1 AST, 3 REB in 13 mins
We got Obi Toppin back, but he wasn’t quite himself. He usually can’t make it past 5 minutes on the court before stealing a highlight moment. In this one, his only attempt came on a rushed three-point attempt. He did throw a nice dime to Mitch from midair on a drive, but that was our only real glimpse of his athleticism.
The thirteen minutes that Obi played were uneventful. That’s rare for me to type. But let’s chalk it up to him just getting his feet wet.
Jericho Sims: 6 PTS (3/3 FG), 6 REB in 22 mins
With Mitchell Robinson’s foul woes, Jericho Sims got a bigger opportunity than he was probably expecting. He used his chance well, with a pair of thunderous dunks and an impressive offensive board for a putback in traffic. The Wizards took away his rim running late, but they could never keep him off the offensive boards. Sims created second chances all game even when surrounded by Washington bodies.
It wasn’t all gravy for Sims though. I spotted him losing his man during some of the Wizards pick and roll sets. I’m hard-pressed to blame him for that when miscommunications were happening everywhere. I can’t call him a cause for missed rotations when other players had bigger issues. But I will say that Sims doesn’t have the clean-up quality that Noel and Mitch have when they’re healthy…at least not yet.
It’s been a while, but the fact remains that Sims’ athleticism pops whenever he gets minutes. The big man looks like a rookie at times thanks to some positioning flaws or small errors. But when he gets to work inside, the youngster can battle with the toughest men in the league (Montrez Harrell included). He looks like a piece for the future, able to contribute now but with the potential to do even more once he’s polished. Sims gets a 2.5 out of 5 for generating second chances but the team’s inability to capitalize saps some impact.
It’s time for Tom Thibodeau to adjust the offense, the defense, the rotation, and everything else
Tom Thibodeau: Every Kemba Walker success feels like a bit of salt in the Knicks’ struggling wounds. Tom Thibodeau’s big rotation change was to remove a proven star while the bigger issues stuck around thanks to their big contracts. That’s the only excuse I can think of for Evan Fournier and Julius Randle to continue to have games like the Washington Wizards debacle. You can’t fix a defense with any changes around these two guys as long as they refuse to put the effort in.
There are other sources for the frustration that I’m not quite sure are fair. I don’t understand Grimes’ availability being announced if his fitness was bad enough to lose minutes to players that just got off a plane from some G-league team. I can’t fathom how Taj Gibson at small-forward made sense to anybody. The defensive game plan itself is worth questioning because every player seemed to over-help and cheat into the middle regardless of their assignment.
This entire game was a mess. We can blame the short-handed situation or the scheduling that allowed Washington a 5-day break smack in the middle of a long season. But that doesn’t explain how these problems have persisted all season long. Thibs’ adjustments have backfired and the team’s most glaring issues continue to go unaddressed. He gets a 0.5 out of 5 for driving Knicks fans crazy with inexplicable decisions.
Closing Thoughts
I think I’ve reached my breaking point with Julius Randle. It’s not entirely his fault, although his effort leaves a lot to be desired. The offense is designed to work through him and that has come to the detriment of every other player. In some games, he tries his hardest and still can’t make it work. In other games, his struggles bleed into his effort and that tanks everyone since he has so much responsibility.
Last year’s team was defined by resilience, this year looks mentally soft. The one player showing some real guts is the guy who got scapegoated at the beginning of the year. Kemba Walker is back with a vengeance. I’m not sure how long his legs can last on 40-minutes a night, but he’s the shining example that accountability can spark better play…maybe Fournier and Randle could use some accountability too.
That’s easier said than done with half the team in health protocol. But players are beginning to return. The Atlanta Hawks are struggling with their own health measures and identity crisis. They’ll be next up on Christmas Day and if the Knicks have any guts they’ll show up to fight. These are the opponents that prompted some big changes…changes that have backfired thus far. Let’s see if the team has heart and if Thibodeau has adjustments after the next one. I’ll see you then Knicks fam!
Stay tuned to KnicksFanTV.com for the latest Knicks news, rumors, and recaps throughout the 2021-22 NBA season. In case you missed it, check out CP’s interview with Elite, Dreamville’s Producer.
