The New York Knicks failed to capitalize on the San Antonio Spurs’ second night of a back-to-back and dropped Tuesday’s contest 119-93.

Still .500, still a playoff seed. 

Still .500, still a playoff seed. 

Still .500, sti— you guys get the point. 

No need to press the panic button after this one, as sloppy a performance as it was for the New York Knicks. They allowed 119 points to the San Antonio Spurs, who were on the second night of a back-to-back, missing a few key players to COVID protocols, having spent the prior evening losing in overtime to the Brooklyn Nets. 

Not to play devil’s advocate, but New York was without Derrick Rose and Taj Gibson, two veterans who have been playing large roles for the team recently with other injuries having been suffered by starters Elfrid Payton and Mitchell Robinson. 

So, to the surprise of many, head coach Tom Thibodeau opted to ride the hype. It was announced shortly before tip-off that Frank Ntilikina would get the starting nod. But it was RJ Barrett that got the Knicks started on Tuesday, something that’s become sort of a tradition recently. 

Barrett’s been doing a majority of his scoring in the first and third quarters lately. 

Frank had a nice runner for his first (of a few more) buckets on the night shortly after:

But four turnovers early on saw New York fall into a 13-8 hole about halfway through the first. Everyone was struggling, but primarily Julius Randle and Nerlens Noel. 

In fact, it almost looked as if the Knicks were the team playing their second game in two nights, not the Spurs. San Antonio was active and had three steals in the first few minutes alone. 

But, in his All-Star form, Randle didn’t let an aggressive approach from the Spurs’ D early on sway his knack and determination to continue making plays. He dusted off the VHS tape labeled ‘Worst of Randle ‘19-20’ and put a throwback move on Jakob Poeltl. 

Those used to be an omen of imminent sorrow and despair. 

Despite Tuesday night’s outcome, the Randle spin move has come a long way, vindicating the “Beyblade” nickname listed on his Basketball-Reference page. 

Speaking of omens, New York’s greatest hope checked in around the three-minute mark of the first quarter and proceeded to knock down the team’s first 3-pointer within the next minute and a half (after missing back-to-back attempts, I must admit). 

That 3-pointer snapped a seven-shot cold streak for the Knicks and brought them within seven. Kevin Knox and Obi Toppin both knocked down a three, and New York walked out of one of their worst first quarters this season down just 25-23. 

Unfortunately for all, this one continued after the buzzer sounded following the first 12 minutes. 

For New York, the second quarter was about Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett, who both entered halftime with double-digit point totals. 

The Knicks scored 24 points to the Spurs’ 26 and found themselves still facing a deficit going into the break. San Antonio took a four point lead behind an absolute team-effort clinic. 

But what else is there to expect from the San Antonio Spurs? Keldon Johnson lead them with nine points at halftime, with Dejounte Murray their second-leading scorer at seven points. 

The third quarter opened up with a mid-range jumper from Frank:

His bucket snapped a 10-0 opening half run by the Spurs. But he didn’t stop there. 

After San Antonio pushed themselves to a 58-51 lead, Ntilikina hit back-to-back threes, both from the corners, to keep the Knicks within range.

New York trailed 60-57 with eight minutes to go in the third quarter. 

And then he hit another!

This is about the point where the good vibes just kind of died for New York. 

Shortly after this, San Antonio found themselves up nine once again, and they never looked back. The Knicks walked into the fourth quarter trailing 87-68. 

To emphasize the disparity that was the second half of this third quarter: that third three from Ntilikina gave New York 60 points with 6:45 to go. And the Spurs only had 66 at that point. 

So, for all my fellow non-math people, I crunched some numbers and confirmed that San Antonio outscored the Knicks 21-8 over the final six-and-a-half minutes or so in the third. 

Woof. 

Here’s the lone highlight I’d offer you from a fourth quarter made up of primarily garbage time rotations and personnel for the New York Knicks. It’s rarely a good sign when hype man Theo Pinson is checking in with two minutes still left to go. 

Sunday soon cometh. 

Notes 

• His numbers aren’t flying off of the box score, and his presence on the floor hasn’t been “loud” lately. But I can’t help but wonder if this is the RJ Barrett we should expect to see from now on, because he’s playing very well within his role. He’s averaging 18 points and 4.3 rebounds over his last four games, while shooting 55% from the field, and has made nine of his last 15 3-point attempts. Pretty good. And each game provides us with a highlight like this one, where he looks far more experienced than a 20-year old who hasn’t even played 100 games in the league yet.

• The New York Knicks have a .500 record and are a playoff seeded team at the halfway point of the season. This year has been quite the turnaround, despite the occasional shortcomings and the team’s insistence on never winning four straight games.

• Frank Ntilikina may actually be back? In Payton’s absence, he’s played some very solid minutes for the Knicks, and in a style I have no doubt that Tom Thibodeau appreciates and enjoys. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that he earned the starting nod in absence of Derrick Rose, particularly over Immanuel Quickley. This would have been a prime opportunity to shove the rookie guard into the limelight. Something to monitor as Elf prepares for his return (take your time, buddy). Frank’s averaging 6.3 points and 1.3 steals over his four-game resurgence and has knocked down five of nine attempts from deep in that span. Certainly sounds like a guy that should be playing.

• Continuing on from the last point, Austin Rivers is gone. He received a DNP-Coach’s Decision in a game where New York needed bodies so badly that half of the Strickland team here would have qualified for playing time. Maybe the Utah Jazz will throw Leon Rose a second-round pick just so they don’t have to play him again this season?

• The Knicks have allowed 110 or more points on 11 different occasions this year. They are 3-8 in those games. They maintain a top-three defensive rating after this one, though, at 108 points per 100 possessions.

• I’d be willing to go out on a limb and say this is a bottom-three game for Julius Randle this year, if not his worst game outright. He finished with 14 points, 11 rebounds, and five assists on 6-16 shooting from the field and 1-5 from deep. But, I’d also be willing to say this doesn’t even come close to any of his 50 worst games from last year. Improvement is improvement, and Randle deserves all the praise.

• I’m not going to talk about Immanuel Quickley. Nice to see him knocking some shots down (team-high 26 points, six threes, but 8-21 shooting overall), but he was a relative non-factor in a really rough outing for the Knicks, doing most of his work in garbage time.

• San Antonio has beaten New York seven straight times now in their home arena. The Knicks won’t get an opportunity to snap that streak this year, but do play the Spurs on May 13 at Madison Square Garden. Also, this game brings San Antonio to 115-4 all-time at home when recording 30 or more assists. Straight up dominance.

• Nerlens Noel didn’t have his best game, despite what some numbers across the box score may tell you. He finished with four points, 12 rebounds, two assists, and three blocks over 36 minutes. I don’t think he caught a pass once. But of all people to be frustrated with, I’m personally going to ignore the guy who’s played 118 minutes over New York’s last three games. (Get well soon Mitch, my beloved.)

Some may look at Gregg Popovich and see one of the greatest coaches the NBA has ever seen. Not to say that they’re wrong, but all I can see is the absolute harbinger of doom. 

For all my Game of Thrones folks, don’t tell me he doesn’t look like one of the lead white walkers that would be horseback alongside the Night King (I’m not the only one who sees it!). Pop may not be capable of actual, full-fledged necromancy, but dammit, will the San Antonio Spurs ever die?