Knicks 116, Warriors 114: Highs and lows
After not pulling off any last-minute trades at the deadline, the New York Knicks rallied behind an MVP effort from Julius Randle to beat the Golden State Warriors, 116-114.
You may not think the New York Knicks won the trade deadline, but facts are facts: the New York Knicks won on the trade deadline.
Behind a 28-point, 16-rebound, 7-assist effort from Julius Randle, the Golden State Warriors suffered their fifth home loss of the season to the league’s most polarizing team.
And on a day where the front office made no acquisitions or transactions to improve what has also arguably been the league’s most underwhelming team this year, no less.
Both the fans and the team needed this one.
When we look back at this upside-down ass season, trust that this win over Steph Curry and Klay Thompson on the road at the Chase Center will stand out among the top performances.
As has become custom, it was Evan Fournier who got New York started in this one.
He hit back-to-back jumpers to counter a pair of threes from Jonathan Kuminga and Klay Thompson within the first few minutes.
But from the initial tip, it was Randle who caught eyes with his effort and energy, moving up and down the floor with purpose, as we’ve seen so much more on this road trip.
That sequence there perfectly illustrates what this team has been missing all season.
There’s a reason as to why head coach Tom Thibodeau so often called Randle the team’s “engine” last season. He’s the most integral connecting piece that enables the rest.
But only when he plays like this.
Fournier continued making shots, while Randle continued doing a little bit of everything, but the Knicks found their biggest boost from Father Time. Thirty-six-year-old Taj Gibson hit two 3-pointers and a pair of free throws in the first quarter to help New York out to a 33-28 lead over Golden State.
At this point, I’m not sure exactly what transpired over the next few minutes. But someone or something wormed its way into Tom Thibodeau’s conscious and had him shake things up.
Because for a brief moment, we got to see a five-man lineup of Immanuel Quickley, Quentin Grimes, Cam Reddish, Obi Toppin, and Mitchell Robinson.
And then Reddish made this tough finger roll over Bjelica.
More of that, please. The lineup and Cam Reddish.
Behind a 13-point effort from Fournier, and a first-half double-double from Randle, New York survived a 17-point second quarter from Stephen Curry, and walked into the break down just 62 to 57. You take that every day of the damn week.
To open up the second half, Kemba Walker surprised us, as he has so many times this season, although more so for the worse than for the better. But I digress.
He hit back-to-back buckets amidst an 11-0 run for the Knicks, leading to a tie game at 71 all.
Randle subsequently went into god mode, and all of a sudden, it was New York’s game to lose.
Without Draymond Green, the Warriors had literally no answer for the ever-aggressive Randle.
Related: the Knicks walked into the fourth quarter UP, 88-82.
But then the thunder sounded, the clouds began to form overhead, and lightning struck inside the Chase Center, igniting a fourth-quarter run for Golden State.
A 3-pointer from Curry cut New York’s lead to eight halfway through the final period, and fans everywhere (myself included) began preparing for the inevitable letdown loss.
But it wasn’t meant to be.
A 21-second possession in which Evan Fournier missed two threes, but Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson would collect a pair of offensive rebounds, led to Quentin Grimes’ second — and inarguably biggest — made shot of the night; a three to put the Knicks up eight.
Golden State played the free throw game the rest of the way, and somehow New York still managed to pull out their first victory of this four-game road trip with two games remaining.
Notes
I’m going to beat this drum for the next 48 hours minimum; last night was only the FIFTH home loss for the Golden State Warriors this season. We saw in the fourth quarter exactly why they’re so tough to play on the road, but the New York Knicks prevailed.
After missing the last game against the Denver Nuggets, Mitchell Robinson was clearly not yet 100% in this one either. Still, when he was on, the paint belonged to him and him alone. He finished with 11 rebounds, and eight (!!!) of them were on the offensive end.
Mitchell has grabbed 22 offensive rebounds on this road trip. In that span, only three players have more: Jarrett Allen (25), Terry Taylor (24), and Isaiah Stewart (23). They’ve all played four games to his three, though, and he’s got as many steals (5) in that span as all of them combined. Also, who the hell is Terry Taylor?
Credit where credit is due. New York has needed every bit of last season’s Julius Randle to keep things close in their four matchups thus far this road trip, and he’s delivered: 29.5 points, 12.0 rebounds, 6.3 assists, and 1.0 steals on a 48/35/71 shooting split.
No one’s going to like me for this next take, but you guys don’t like me now so I’ll just say it: I thought Kemba Walker was fine tonight. All six of his assists were earned, not hockey style, to my best recollection. 22 minutes is probably still too much for him at this juncture, but Thibs didn’t play him down the stretch. Take the wins where you get them.
What is there to say about Evan Fournier? He had some great moments, and he had some real fucking bad ones. There were lapses defensively, and a few 3-point attempts that were blatantly unnecessary; shooters shoot? After making five of them last night, Fournier is now the seventh-leading 3-point maker in the NBA with 159. Among those other six though, only Patty Mills (.422) is shooting a better clip.
With each Warriors game I watch, the feeling I get when seeing Klay Thompson back refuses to fade. The league is better with him healthy. And he’s looked no less than 70% of himself thus far through 13 (!!!) games: 16.7 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 3.2 assists (career-high) on a 42/37/100 shooting split.
Missed free throws are still a problem. The Knicks shot 24-33 (72%) from the charity stripe tonight and have made 84-116 (72%) on their four-game road trip. Ironically enough, their 84 free throws made and their 116 attempts lead the NBA in that span. Their .724 conversion rate ranks 23rd, however.
Immanuel Quickley’s stretch in the twilight zone continues. He played pretty reserved tonight, taking only three shots all evening, which I think should continue to highlight just how much his poor shooting numbers have influenced his confidence this year. This was only the second game this season where he took less than five shots and played more than 15 minutes on the night. Keep pushing kid.
I wanted to save Cam Reddish for the final bullet here because he was such a treat to watch in this one. The 22-year old finished with 12 points on 4-8 shooting from the field, three assists, and two steals in his most minutes in a Knicks uniform (19:24). This kid has all the tangibles to be a real player on the wing, and made a number of winning plays that won’t show up on the stat sheet. The mistakes he made were sometimes costly in the moment, but none were due to an inability to convert those plays. Reddish can sometimes be caught red-handed as an overzealous youngster in this league trying to prove himself, but it’s rarely on ill-advised plays. With RJ Barrett out, I anticipate we’ll continue to see more of the slicing and dicing Cameron. Especially after tonight. And we’ll all (hopefully) be better for it.
This season has been a campaign straight out of hell. The highs have been euphoric, but the lows have been demoralizing, and unfortunately more frequent.
As we prep as a fanbase for the second stretch of the year, post-All-Star break, it’s important to recognize the team each day for what it is, what we think it can be, and what we know it’s been.
Because ultimately it’s those highs and lows that will define this season and contribute towards whatever becomes of the front office’s next trip to the drawing board this summer.
Highs and lows.
Lows and highs.
