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The New York Knicks have had more than their share of embarrassing moments this season. However, the team’s latest setback against the Blazers on Saturday may just take the cake. It was peak Knicks in the worst possible way.
Facing a Portland team that just traded CJ McCollum and was without injured star Damian Lillard, New York somehow managed to squander a 23-point, third-quarter lead. By night’s end, the club had lost the game 112-103 and fallen to 25-32 on the year as a result.
Several things went wrong for the Knicks in the contest. Portland dominated down low throughout the night, outscoring New York 48-28 in the paint. Meanwhile, the Knicks managed just 11 fourth-quarter points as fourth-year guard Anfernee Simons keyed a 35-point outburst for the Blazers.
And Evan Fournier was just 1-of-13 from the floor.
In the wake of the loss, though, Knicks center Mitchell Robinson made a point to take responsibility for his own contributions — or the lack thereof — to the disturbing effort.
Robinson Says He Didn’t Bring It
Before the Blazers debacle, Robinson had been on something of a tear for New York. His solid play has even left some to wonder whether the Knicks might shell out a whole lot of dough to extend him this offseason, despite the fact that such a move would impact the team’s flexibility going forward.
In this game, however, the fourth-year big man played just 14 minutes, scoring two points and logging a minus-six in the plus/minus department.
“Can’t speak for everyone but I gotta hold myself accountable to play at a high level every night,” the baller tweeted. “Tonight I was [too] relaxed and had no urgency…”
It’s worth noting that Robinson’s night was cut short due to injury. He was forced to exit the game during the third quarter due to left ankle soreness. And while he returned briefly, and even converted a lob dunk for his only bucket of the night, he eventually limped his way back to the bench before hitting the locker room.
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Grimes Goes Off
Although the Knicks blew the game down the stretch, there were a handful of positives to be gleaned from the effort. For his part, Kemba Walker resembled his old, All-Star self, scoring 23 points and knocking down four three-point shots. Also — Julius Randle dropped a 28-16-6 line.
However, Quentin Grimes may have been the Knicks’ best player. In 36 minutes on the court as RJ Barrett’s stand-in, the rookie forward put up 20 points on 6-of-10 shooting (with five triples) and added four boards, three dimes and a pair of steals.
Fourteen of Grimes’ points came during the third quarter when the Knicks built their big lead. However, the former first-round pick didn’t attempt a shot during the final frame, which probably says a whole lot more about the team’s point guard situation than it does about him.
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