Knicks 124, Rockets 118: Clutch sports group
Jalen Brunson put on a fourth-quarter clinic to lift the Knicks past another Western power
This was an awfully annoying game. Until it wasn’t.
Officiating all over the place. Physicality at an all-time high. Tom Thibodeau screaming at officials all night. Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart, too. Ime Udoka got in on that action in the final minutes. Amen Thompson looked the part of a franchise cornerstone through three quarters that all favored the Houston Rockets.
But then Brunson took over in the fourth quarter, spearheading a 46-point frame and eventual win for the New York Knicks. He scored 17 in only 7 minutes, which was both fucking awesome and the point differential between the two teams. He’s a real maestro when it matters.
Mikal Bridges was the two-way star of the day, handling the assignment of Jalen Green with a confidence rarely seen from Bridges this season. Karl-Anthony Towns’ thumb injury lingers – still – but he finished with 22, 11 in the fourth. OG Anunoby missed the first of what I anticipate will be a string of games with a foot sprain. Precious Achiuwa underwhelmed in what I anticipate will be a string of starts. New York is 33-17 and third in the Eastern Conference with 32 games to go. For all our angst and perpetuated plight, that’s pretty good, no?
Notes
Towns shot 1-for-5 from downtown and is 4-of-25 since injuring his thumb nine games and two weeks ago. So yeah, I’d say it’s bothering him. I’d also say nothing if asked how to fix or alleviate it. Both the Knicks and Towns seem determined for him to play through it. But it sucks to watch.
Thompson is a freak of nature I wouldn’t trade for Anthony Davis. He finished with a 25-point, 11-rebound, 11-assist triple-double. I can’t place a comparison for his outlook. His athleticism is otherworldly. The outside shooting is non-existent. His IQ is clearly ahead of schedule, with tonight’s performance the first real look at the 22-year-old as an offensive engine. And the results were good, to say the least.
Towns’ foul trouble allowed for some early minutes for Ariel Hukporti. As someone who’s campaigned to see more of the rookie, I’ll be honest: the results were middling. He had a highlight block and a couple strong sequences defensively, but was otherwise moving like someone too big for his body, a rookie too small for the moment. Thibs isn’t going to play him outside of circumstances like tonight. Maybe the injury to Anunoby means he’ll get the same run over the next few weeks. I think he’d be better for it. Who wouldn’t?
Brunson won the game; Bridges won the night. He finished a team-high +29 in 39 minutes, a night that threatened to end early and badly after he stepped on a foot on a drive under the basket. But he shook it off and got back to business. Bridges really is the NBA’s ironman. That’s one of the reasons he made (and makes) so much sense for this team – need I remind you of last year’s playoffs? 22 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks and a steal, all while keeping Green as good as out of sight, all because of the mind of one defensive demon. Fun stuff.
It’s been a frustrating season for Miles McBride. As much as I wanted to join in on the “WTF Thibs!” chants pregame when it was announced Achiuwa would be starting in place of Anunoby, I couldn’t. Deuce has rarely been loose this year. It feels like a retroactive sophomore slump, given that he never played a full season until last year, really. It’s possible Thibs is reaping what he sowed. Know what I mean? He’s another player you’d hope will take a bigger slice of the pie while Anunoby’s out.
Josh Hart was everywhere in this one, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. His mid-game motivational (I’m assuming?) speech to the basketball can’t go without recognition, nor his 19/8/5 performance, along with two stocks. Hart fills in the gaps. On a night Anunoby was out and Towns was treading water, there were a lot of gaps. Hart did his best, which is both what he’ll be remembered for (championships withstanding) and why fans are so endeared to him.
Houston? Brunson is a problem. There’s always some good in some bad. Anunoby being out means the Knicks can fact-check the already concerning depth of this team. Towns’ being off means Brunson is confidently and definitively back in the driver’s seat. That fourth quarter from New York’s captain may go down in the history books for the mixtape value alone. Brunson was all over, waning and weaving between defenders to get up off-balance floaters and layups. It was cerebral. And he hit a three, too! That’s been a topic of concern for many of us this season. Didn’t matter the move, didn’t matter the defender, didn’t matter the officiating: Brunson fourth-walled this one like only superstars can.
A lot can happen in 24 hours. This week alone, the directions of a few multi-billion dollar organizations were altered by the decisions of two individuals, one now a serious persona non grata in the streets of Dallas. And there are some teams still who will make similarly impactful decisions with only days left until the trade deadline. On a lesser scale, as I write this, I’m under the weather. I don’t feel as bad as I did 24 hours ago. And I’m hoping I’ll be more recovered 24 hours into the future. For the New York Knicks, a win over the Houston Rockets means less concern over a loss to the Los Angeles Lakers. But all the vibes can be lost again with a poor performance against RJ Barrett and the Toronto Raptors tonight.