It wasn’t just another loss for the New York Knicks. It was a game that slipped away before it could truly begin. The 110-97 defeat against the Los Angeles Lakers tells the story of a game controlled by the home team from start to finish, despite the absence of LeBron James. The Knicks were never…
It wasn’t just another loss for the New York Knicks. It was a game that slipped away before it could truly begin. The 110-97 defeat against the Los Angeles Lakers tells the story of a game controlled by the home team from start to finish, despite the absence of LeBron James.
The Knicks were never in the lead throughout the entire game. For Mike Brown, the issue wasn’t the talent of the opponents but the mistakes made by his own team.
The truth is they dominated us on the glass. We didn’t box out and we gave up 15 second-chance points, something we normally don’t allow. We can’t lose in that area of the floor. It happened because we didn’t put bodies on them to finish the possession with a rebound
Mike Brown
The list of mistakes was long: lazy defense on the dribble, unnecessary fouls and too many turnovers.
If you give up 30 free throws and turn the ball over 18 times, that’s a recipe for disaster on the road
Mike Brown
The 25-point, 16-rebound double-double by Karl-Anthony Towns wasn’t enough, nor were the 24 points and 7 assists from Jalen Brunson. The interesting detail, however, is what the coach did not do: look for a scapegoat. Mikal Bridges, for example, finished with 0 points on 0-of-6 shooting, a performance that could have drawn heavy criticism. Instead, Brown spoke about collective responsibility.
We had things that were under our control that we didn’t do well. And that’s what’s frustrating
Mike Brown
With a 41-24 record, the Knicks remain among the top teams in the Eastern Conference, but this loss highlights just how thin the margin for error can be.
