New York Knicks vs. Atlanta Hawks
A common refrain about Spike Lee movies is that the city of New York feels like a living, breathing character. It has a presence in his films beyond that of a typical urban backdrop. It has dialogue; it impacts events.
Well, the Knicks crowd, amplified by the presence of Gotham villain Trae Young, felt three-dimensional in this NBA Cup quarterfinal, moaning, groaning, and cheering every time the ball ricocheted off a body part or players tumbled to the ground. It felt like it could change the events on the court, albeit with little control, like a player tilting a pinball machine. Even from my couch, I could feel the energy pulsing from the screen.
The atmosphere was electric; the quality of play was suspect. I’m not sure I’d let my loved ones watch, but for a specific breed of basketball fan (like the one who subscribes to this newsletter), it was gloriously grimy.
It was a miracle either of these teams hit triple-digits. The ball spent more time squirting out of rugby scrum-style dog piles than it did going through nets. The Knicks posted their lowest offensive rating of the season; the Hawks’ two best players, Jalen Johnson and Trae Young, combined for 43 points on 42 shots. Atlanta started the game 1-for-10 from deep, while New York had a stretch where they missed 12 straight triples.
In the end, however, it was Trae Young rolling phantom dice on the Knicks logo to celebrate going to Vegas.
The Hawks defense might be legit. Young is an easy target, but he also suckers teams into getting out of their offense to try and attack him, leaving them vulnerable to the swarm of kinetic, lengthy athletes that are standing by to help at a moment’s notice. Dyson Daniels chewed Jalen Brunson up (14 points on 15 shots), using a toothpick to get every last morsel. Karl-Anthony Towns looked like the bad version of Minnesota Towns, letting the physicality unnerve him and committing silly fouls (although he did snag 19 rebounds and six stocks).
Despite Towns’ efforts, Atlanta won this game the way older Knicks iterations used to win theirs: straight bully-ball on the boards. The Hawks notched 22 offensive rebounds (seemingly half of which came in the fourth quarter), repeatedly resetting the shot clock and demoralizing their foe.
Atlanta, winner of seven of its last eight, has gotten hot at a fun part of the year. The Hawks have now beaten the Knicks (twice), Celtics, and Cavs (twice). With Jalen Johnson emerging as an All-Star candidate, Trae Young shifting from gunner to Point God mode, and De’Andre Hunter (game-high 24 points) looking like a serious Sixth Man of the Year contender, the Hawks will be eagerly anticipating another matchup against Milwaukee, whom they blew out just a week ago, in the Cup semifinal.
Houston Rockets vs. Golden State Warriors
Whatever I said above about Atlanta and New York goes double for this heinous, beautiful Rockets/Warriors match. Houston won 91-90 in an absolute bloodbath. The squads spent large parts of the night pleading their case to the uncaring officials, and they combined for 19 free throw attempts despite immense physicality; as a neutral observer, I absolutely loved the flow of the game.
Both top-five defenses were absolutely locked in. Every bucket felt like a minor holiday miracle. Where Hawks vs. Knicks had the rollicking Young vs. the crowd energy of a wrestling match, this one was more of a bare-knuckles, dark-alley brawl.
These players wanted to win not just to win, but to make the other side lose. Sengun was roaring after every bucket; Curry threw a Tiger Woods fist-pump after a third-quarter and-one; Draymond Green hit the too-small against the Lilliputian Fred VanVleet.
For Golden State, the game ended with yet another possession that never yielded a rim touch, as Jabari Smith blocked Brandin Podziemski’s desperation three at the buzzer. That followed a three-possession sequence in which Houston forced two straight 24-second violations, and Draymond Green threw a pass to the baseline photographers. The Warriors even incurred a rare eight-second violation in the fourth quarter!
Yes, a loose-ball foul call with seconds left that put Jalen Green on the line for clutch winning free throws was a bad break, but it wasn’t the wrong call (it was a foul) so much as an unfortunate one. The big culprits were — stop me if you’ve heard this before! — Golden State’s carelessness with the ball, including Gary Payton flinging a loose ball away instead of calling a timeout and Steph Curry’s bizarrely early chuck while up one with ten seconds on the shot clock.
(An aside: I, like most, love the joy that Steph Curry brings to the court every night. But he was playing fast and loose with reality all night. What the **** was this? Curry seems destined to give coach Steve Kerr a heart attack.)
The Warriors’ late-game execution problems must be addressed soon for the team to make any playoff noise. But for Houston, the win after 15 straight losses to Golden State (including two this season with no Steph Curry) was vindication. They’re young and eager to prove themselves on any stage they can. The NBA Cup’s importance varies depending on the contact prescription of the beholder, but it’s clear that these Houston players care not just about the money, but the meaning.