TORONTO — The Knicks have an issue.
They’re reeling. They’ve misplaced their id, their defensive tenacity that has been deserted and ditched throughout a discouraging four-game shedding streak.
It’s straightforward responsible the harm to Mitchell Robinson, the bouncy anchor within the center. But if the Knicks can’t stand up to the absence of a specialist middle, the problems go a lot deeper.
“Clearly we have to pick it up, be better,” Jalen Brunson mentioned. “All five spots on the floor. It starts with me and it starts with everyone else helping each other. We can’t say, ‘Oh, (Robinson’s) not here. We have to come together as a team.”
Sunday’s 125-116 defeat to the Raptors turned the most recent instance. It began early and took full form to start with of the fourth quarter, when the reserves gave up a 13-2 run in about three minutes. The Knicks couldn’t get well.
“I know we fouled, we gave up offensive rebounds and we turned the ball over,” coach Tom Thibodeau mentioned. “That’s usually a recipe to getting beat.”
On one hand, it’s straightforward to see why Thibodeau leans a lot into his starters. The reserves permit devastating wounds to open, comparable to Sunday. On the opposite hand, he’s been leaning into them a lot currently that it’s not possible for the subs to discover a groove, or really feel assured, with out worrying about who’s strolling to scorer’s desk.
Obi Toppin was a robust instance of that Sunday. He performed seven minutes to begin the second quarter, shot properly and scored 12 factors in a flash. Then he didn’t play once more till the fourth quarter.
“Not (surprised),” Toppin mentioned. “Whatever coach needed me to do, I’m going to do.”
Overall, the Knicks (25-23) acquired 23 factors and 19 rebounds from Julius Randle and sufficient offense to go away with no less than a extra aggressive effort. But they couldn’t cease the Raptors (21-27), who carved up New York’s pick-and-roll protection whereas capturing 15 for 34 from past the arc.
Six Raptors — Scottie Barnes, Fred VanVleet, Gary Trent Jr., Chad Boucher, Precious Achiuwa and Pascal Siakam — scored in double-digits. Siakam, Trent Jr. and VanVleet every had no less than 24.
The Knicks gave up no less than 116 factors for the fourth straight sport. Brunson missed 9 of his 15 pictures whereas getting outplayed by VanVleet.
“I’m always concerned. I’m concerned every day,” Thibodeau mentioned. “But it doesn’t change how you approach anything. Okay, we study, we have to improve, we have to do better, get ready for the next game. We’re not overwhelmed. We know what we have to do. We’ve got to get in, we’ve got to work and we’ve got to correct that.”
Beyond Robinson’s absence due to the fractured thumb, the Knicks navigated Sunday with out Immanuel Quickley. The backup quard was a late addition to the harm report with a sore knee, though Tom Thibdoeau, true to type, offered no perception into the extent of the harm or the way it occurred.
“Just general soreness,” the coach mentioned.
It was Quickley’s first missed sport of the season, and his DNP meant Evan Fournier acquired one other shot within the rotation. The Frenchman didn’t take benefit whereas lacking six of his 9 shot makes an attempt. .
Remarkably, Sunday represented the primary time all season the Knicks performed with a relaxation in benefit. In different phrases, the Raptors had been on the second sport of a back-to-back and the Knicks got here off a relaxation day. Thibodeau has implied New York’s unbalanced schedule was no less than partially responsible for its poor file at dwelling, which he repeated earlier than Sunday.
“It’s been unusual. I think if you dig into it, particularly the home games, usually when you’re at home you have the rest advantage or it’s equal. But that hasn’t been the case,” the coach mentioned. “Whatever the schedule is, the schedule is. You just have to deal with it.”
But the remainder didn’t assist the Knicks in Toronto. They got here out flat and lazy on protection, falling in a 15-point gap after the primary quarter whereas giving up 37.
New York clawed again to take the lead late within the third quarter, however then the 13-2 run to begin the fourth doomed the Knicks.
“We got in another hole,” Thibodeau mentioned.
RJ Barrett, the Canadian who obtained a pleasant ovation at introductions at ScotiaBank Arena,, mentioned he carried additional motivation in his first homecoming sport of the season. He responded with 30 factors however was additionally on the ground throughout Toronto’s fateful fourth quarter run. Barrett was juiced for his head-to-head with Barnes, who claimed after their earlier matchup that he exploited the dimensions mismatch at will.
Barnes had 19 factors and left with one other victory, the second time the Raptors beat the Knicks in per week.
“We can’t dwell on how we’ve been playing,” Brunson mentioned. “We know how we’ve played in the past and we have to get back to that.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com