Game Day: Knicks vs. Hawks, Game 5, 6/2/21
The Knicks are facing elimination, down 3-1 and returning to Madison Square Garden. Can they turn things around and force a Game 6?
This is it. Every game from here on out is “it.” Things are now very simply “win or go home” for the Knicks.
How did we get here? Well, it could be much different right now, if not for a Trae Young game winner in Game 1. If the Knicks had pulled that game out, the series would be tied 2-2, and even if the results from Atlanta remained the same — with the Knicks being blown out twice — it’d be pretty easy to say, “OK, the Knicks still have home court, just take care of business at the Garden and it’ll be fine.”
But now it’s do or die time, and things really need to change in a big way for the Knicks. Even their one win in Game 2 basically featured them getting beat down for two quarters, followed by a revitalized second half that won it for them.
What’s been the biggest issue? It’s hard to pick just one. In the last game, I actually thought there were some signs of life from the Knicks’ despite it being their worst loss points-wise of the series. In the first half, Julius Randle finally started finding the looks that have defined his breakout season — spot-up and side-step threes, step-back midrange jumpers, strong drives to the hoop either ending in fouls or kick-outs — but he just couldn’t make them. RJ Barrett got rolling as well, finally showing the basketball IQ that’s made him such a valuable player to this team, rather than the nervous-looking version of himself that was throwing up horrible contested layups in the first few games of the series.
Still, a huge run from the Hawks buried the Knicks in Game 4 just like it did in Game 3 — this time in the third quarter rather than the second, but a game-ending run nonetheless. The team seems aware of that going into this game:
Clint Capela decided to cut a WWE promo yesterday too, saying the Hawks were going to “send the Knicks on vacation,” and overall complaining that the Knicks have been too physical this series after Randle shoved Danilo Gallinari (whose OAKAAK status HAS to be in doubt thanks to his stupid haircut) for making a dirty play on Reggie Bullock down the other end. Randle and Derrick Rose seemed pretty unfazed:
In a way, I kind of hope Randle cares more than he’s letting on, because these guys should be incensed that a role player on the other team is talking that much shit AND embarrassing them on the floor. The odds of the Knicks winning this series are extremely slim — they’d join only 13 other teams in NBA history if they came back from a 3-1 deficit — but getting it to at least six games shouldn’t be that hard with a raucous MSG crowd behind them.
If this is it, then this is it. But hopefully there’s at least one more win in the cards for these Knicks, one last time for New York to get behind them and feel some jubilation in a season where they provided so much of it. But if not, then job well done, Knicks. This was a season to remember no matter what.
Game’s at 7:30 tonight on MSG and TNT. Come hang with us on Twitter during the game. I’m lucky enough that I’ll be there in person, so I’ll see you all on the other side.
