In the most imperfect of fashions, the New York Knicks sealed a close game and win over the Orlando Magic on Monday, 91-84.

There are ugly wins in basketball. But on Monday against the Orlando Magic, the New York Knicks may have set the new standard. Still, they got the win, and while it wasn’t pretty, how often are you captivated by a team’s performance in the second half of a back-to-back?

After blowing out the Jayson Tatum-less Boston Celtics on Sunday, the Knicks walked into Monday’s game with somewhat of a swagger. Maybe not in the sense of arrogance, but still, knowing that they just beat up on an Eastern Conference playoff team the day before. 

New head coach Tom Thibodeau even went as far as to hold what was described by the broadcasting crew as an “intense walkthrough” in shootaround hours before the game. These aren’t the same old New York Knicks, but that much should already be apparent. Yet any momentum from Sunday’s win was more of a late release in Monday’s game against Orlando. 

Aside from big man Nikola Vucevic, not much basketball was being played to start for either team. He outscored the Knicks nine points to six halfway through the first quarter, and those were the only points scored throughout the first six minutes of Monday’s match. 

A 3-point shot from Julius Randle set things into motion for New York, and they didn’t look back for the remainder of the first period. The Knicks’ lead talent didn’t put on his prettiest performance, but still finished with 21 points and 17 rebounds in an unsurprising 39 minutes.

He and RJ Barrett led the Knicks on an 11-0 run, which was capped off by this layup from New York’s sophomore wing. Once Vucevic was taken out of the game by Orlando head coach Steve Clifford, the Magic’s options on offense slimmed dramatically. 

Thibodeau closed out the first quarter giving every Knicks fan their greatest wish, unleashing rookie combo guard Immanuel Quickley onto the Magic. He hit one of his trademark floaters within minutes, helping New York close out the first quarter with a 19-13 lead over Orlando.

Despite giving up nine points to Nikola Vucevic, it was nice to see the young Knickerbockers maintain their defensive discipline from Sunday’s game against the Celtics. The second night of a back-to-back has rarely favored New York, but they came out strong (in fact, Mike Breen mentioned that the Knicks hadn’t won both games of a back-to-back in over three years, or 40-plus back-to-backs). 

Things picked up on the offensive end for both teams in the second period, but the Magic found themselves unable to climb out of the hole they had fallen into. Quickley got up to nine points in five minutes on the floor, and closed out his first half with, of course… another floater. 

RJ Barrett made his way back into the game and immediately started getting to the rim with ease, and drew a couple fouls to end the second quarter. That was just about the remainder of the excitement for the rest of the half, with the Magic still struggling to score points. 

Oh there was this play, which, well, make of it what you will. 

If there was a clip that properly encapsulated just what Monday’s play from either side was like, it’s that one. But it’s also an appropriate reminder that Mitchell Robinson was not in top shape against Orlando. New York’s starting big took a hard fall in the Knicks’ win over the Celtics, and wasn’t even ruled healthy enough to play until minutes prior to the Knicks’ tip against the Magic. 

Randle knocked in a 3-pointer to close the half and give New York a 47-38 lead at the break. 

The Knicks and the Magic closed the first half having made just 8-32 attempts from behind the arc, and shooting a combined 34% from the field. Both teams walked into the locker room with a laundry list of improvements to make, starting and ending with just flat-out making their shots. For New York, Barrett and Quickley combined for 23 points; they were the only two Knicks to notch double digits in the first half. Aaron Gordon and Nikola Vucevic led the way for Orlando with a combined 22 points and 17 rebounds. 

Starting out on a clean slate served no purpose for either team in the third quarter, with both teams getting just enough going to maintain the established differential. The most exciting play of the third quarter? New York opening up the second half by forcing a 24-second violation. 

All the shooting struggles from the first half followed the Knicks into the second, so much so that it seeped into their free throw shooting. New York finished out Monday’s win having made just 24-of-34 of their attempts from the charity stripe. That trend improved towards the end of the game, but those 10 points certainly would have come in handy for the Knicks. 

The fourth quarter came and went, ultimately with the New York Knicks earning their first back-to-back sweep in over three years. But not even a 12-point lead going into the final quarter was enough to keep things uninteresting. Vucevic re-found his footing, and even Terrence Ross banked in a couple of circus shots (albeit missing more than he made). Orlando went on a 16-3 run over a five-minute span and tied the game on a 3-pointer from Gordon. 

Despite the Magic’s aggression, the Knicks spent the back half of the fourth quarter in the bonus, something I’m happy to say that even they know how to properly utilize. It kept any momentum for the Magic stagnant and choppy, paving the way for a number of misses and ultimately a pair of Julius Randle free throws that sealed the win. 

It wasn’t the Knicks’ worst game this season, no, we’ll defer that title to a game they actually lost. But trust that Thibodeau and company will have a number of things to address before New York takes on the Golden State Warriors in the first of a four-game road trip out West. Luckily, they’ll have two whole days to rest before playing that four-game slate in six days. 

Notes

• Rookie guard Immanuel Quickley had another good game, but was unable to close out the game for Thibodeau. After being subbed in to begin the fourth quarter, he was replaced by Elfrid Payton within minutes. New York’s starting point guard would go on to finish the game strongly. Before that, though, there was this nice moment from Quickley, a lob to fellow rookie Obi Toppin:

• Even though he’s injured, it’s hard to overlook Mitchell Robinson’s inability to keep up with large, 3-point-shooting bigs. Vucevic finished Monday’s game with 24 points, 14 rebounds, and two blocks. As he gets back on the mend, which hopefully won’t prove an actual process, Robinson’s going to have to get better at guarding his fellow bigs along the perimeter. Al Horford had 15 points in New York’s loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder over a week ago, in a way foretelling what would happen when Mitch guarded the much more talented Vucevic.

• Reggie Bullock is important for the Knicks, and his value only doubles in the absence of Alec Burks (please come back soon). His defense, overall IQ, and ability to hit the occasional shot keeps some of New York’s spacing concerns at bay. Given that it’s their greatest weakness currently, that pushes him to the top five of important personnel.

• After almost losing the game single-handedly against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday due to some untimely turnovers, RJ Barrett was impeccable down the stretch of this game. I mean, the kid was clutch. He broke up the Magic’s run in the fourth quarter, which kept the Knicks in the game. Without him, they don’t win this one. That’s nice to say, and hopefully will quiet some of the doubters.

• While Julius Randle won this game with the four free throws he made in the game’s final seconds, New York was only able to create separation with Orlando thanks to RJ making this play on defense and completing the difficult layup on the other end.

Last year’s Knicks wouldn’t have won today’s game. Hell, it’s likely they wouldn’t have won yesterday’s game either. And the two games combined? Forget about it. We are seeing the signs of change in New York, under the prince who was promised, head coach Tom Thibodeau. 

As much as there is to dislike about Monday’s win, embrace the outcome, friends. Because no one, myself included, had the New York Knicks with seven wins and eight losses through their first 15 games. The surprise factor may not be here to stay. We can worry about the details later.