Friday night Knicks. Back again. Preseason Game 2. Sitting down in front of the tv to watch the Knicks play at MSG. A packed Madison Square Garden. Take that Kevin Durant.
The Knicks had beaten Washington in game 1 of the preseason so this stood to be a win.
And the Knicks jumped out to at 15 point lead. All was well with the world. RJ Barrett looked good.
RJ's debut already lookin' nice 👀
Six quick points for the Rook. pic.twitter.com/o4Rpf1ecth— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) October 11, 2019
And then.. Scott Brooks the Washington coach had Washington amp up their defense, and the Knicks withered. Moritz Wagner the Washington 7-foot center started bombing 3’s from all over the place, and before you knew it the Knicks were down 15.
Wipe out.
The Game in Summary
On the offensive end the Knicks would come down and shoot immediately, and miss. Then Washington would come down pass-pass-pass and hit an open 3. This has been the Knicks published scouting report for several years — pass the ball a few times and the Knicks will fold on D; you’ll get an open 3.
The Knicks looked like they needed a point guard. Still.
Elfrid Payton did not penetrate; did not score (0-9 from the floor for 9 points in 26 minutes). He did play a tenacious defense.
Frank Ntilikina — who still does not look like a point guard as he doesn’t penetrate, orchestrate, or put the other team on its heals — played pretty well in the 3rd. He did drive to the basket twice which is always hallelujah. IF he can continue to do that and play with confidence the Knicks might have a player yet.
Allonzo Trier surfaced for playing time in the 3rd and was instant offense.
💸 from the outside for @ISO_ZO pic.twitter.com/Ar0egCJGF0
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) October 12, 2019
Mitchell Robinson had a bad night — committing stupid fouls — coming down on players while trying to block their shot — including Wagner several times. PS: Wagner looked like a lights-out 3-pt weapon in this game; last year his rookie season, he shot .286 from 3 on 1.8 attempts per game. He averaged 10 minutes and 4.8 points. But on this night he looks like he will have a much-improved sophomore season.
Marcus Morris played well and Wayne Ellington hit some 3’s. Taj Gibson played pretty well.
Outcoached
The magnifying glass turned to coach David Fizdale. The Knicks were clearly outcoached in this game. Washington has a bunch of new players too and talent wise are considered to be the worst team in the league. But their coach Scott Brooks has them playing better ball than the Knicks — they played a tenacious D and passed the ball with intent on offense. The Knicks had no identity. Again.
Highlight
The highlight of this game was the article written about it by Marc Berman the NY Post beat Knicks writer. Berman has always been the best pure writer in NY sports and put on a showcase for this game.
Etcetera
Before the game Charles Oakley commented on the Knicks having Detroit’s Ben Wallace instruct the Knicks big men a few days earlier. The amazing thing about the tweet was the NEGATIVE comments by Knick fans against Oakley — almost 100 percent negative towards Oakley.
Ben Wallace really!!! Ben Wallace tells Knicks he sees similarities with 2004 NBA champion Pistons #Topbuzz https://t.co/1QPXfmlj2N
— Charles Oakley (@CharlesOakley34) October 11, 2019
The tide may have turned on Knick fans supporting Oakley over owner James Dolan — who by the way has embraced almost every other former Knick (except for not hiring Patrick Ewing as coach which nobody else did either). Some former Knicks stay around for years for no apparent reason (like Herb Williams and Allan Houston). Dolan has in fact said Oakley was his favorite player, so the schism clearly appears to rest on Oakley’s shoulders.
The Boxscore
https://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=401163153
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