The New York Knicks suffered a tough loss to the Detroit Pistons, falling 124-119 despite a valiant effort from a rejuvenated Mikal Bridges, another dominant night from Jalen Brunson, and hot shooting across the board.
The Knicks struggled to execute late-game as Karl-Anthony Towns playing through a seemingly badly injured right thumb got called for his third offensive foul on an illegal screen with a minute left and a chance for New York to take their first lead since early in the 3rd quarter.
That play was followed by back-to-back threes for Malik Beasley (who set an MSG record for threes over a two-game stretch on the legendary court) as a product of the Knicks trapping Cade Cunningham and Josh Hart twice rotating off of Beasley and allowing relatively open shots to one of the NBA’s best from distance. The aggressive defense on Cunningham was a product of the former #1 pick absolutely eviscerating the Knicks’ defense to the tune of 29 points in the 2nd half alone.
Ideally, the Knicks would have pre-switched Brunson out of the screening action and allowed OG Anunoby to take on the burden of guarding Cade one-on-one and if one of the best defenders in the world gets beat you live with it vs. the two golden looks spoon-fed to Beasley.
The Knicks were also hampered by 17 turnovers (six by KAT alone), scalding shooting from the Pistons (an insane 50-44-94 shooting split for the game), generally listless play from Anunoby, and poor shooting/defense from KAT down the stretch (0-3 from three in the 4th).
Mikal Bridges Bounces Back
One bright spot for the Knicks was the performance of Mikal Bridges. After arguably his most feeble two-game stretch of the season, Bridges exploded for 27 points on just 13 shots, including a scorching 6-of-8 from beyond the arc. His defensive efforts, particularly early on against Cunningham, were good if not elite.
Other times this year Mikal has made a substantial impact early before ultimately fading down the stretch of games, but that wasn’t the case tonight as he scored 12 points in the 4th quarter on perfect shooting including a monster three with 1:26 to go that cut the Pistons lead to just one.
Jalen Brunson’s Masterclass
Jalen Brunson continued his stellar play, notching 30 points and 11 assists. Despite struggling from three-point range (1-for-7), Brunson’s ability to dictate the game’s pace and make crucial plays down the stretch kept the Knicks competitive throughout.
For more insights and a deeper dive into the Knicks’ performance against the Pistons, tune into the Locked On Knicks podcast for this and much more.
Other Topics in Today’s Locked On Knicks Podcast:
• Karl-Anthony Towns’ injury concerns and impact on the game
• The Knicks’ bench performance and areas for improvement
• Upcoming challenges with the league’s toughest remaining schedule
