The New York Knicks’ season is officially in jeopardy, as they have now dropped both home games in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Indiana Pacers. They fell short of getting a bounce back win Friday, losing by a score of 114-109.
The Knicks played without a sense of urgency
The Knicks had gotten their hearts ripped out in Game 1 after blowing a big lead late in the fourth quarter. Instead of responding in a big way like they have done all postseason, they came out looking flat.
Careless turnovers and poor defense haunted the Knicks again, and they didn’t properly adjust to Indiana’s fast-paced offense. New York recorded 12 turnovers with just 18 assists, and a lot of those turnovers came at critical points in the game.
While they got improved performances from guys like OG Anunoby and Karl-Anthony Towns, they were getting enough from Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart. They needed the others to step up in a must-win game, and they did not come through.
Furthermore, they had no answer defensively for Pascal Siakam. He was constantly getting to his spot in the low post and finished with a game-high 39 points, and he was one of six Indiana players to score in double digits.
Jalen Brunson did all he could once again
The main reason this game was close was because of Jalen Brunson being dialed in offensively once again. After scoring 43 points in Game 1, he followed it up with a 36-point, 11-assist performance in Game 2.
Similar to how the Knicks couldn’t stop Siakam, the Pacers had no answer for Brunson. He was taking advantage of the mismatches he was getting and created great separation for clean looks, but the issue was that the Knicks couldn’t get the stops to capitalize on his shot-making.
Head coach Tom Thibodeau noticeably gave Mitchell Robinson and Miles McBride extended minutes in the first half, which led to them entering the halftime break with a 3-point lead. However, McBride saw the court much less in the second half, and Thibodeau inexplicably gave Cameron Payne crucial minutes in the fourth quarter, to which the Knicks were a -9 in those three minutes he played.
One way or another, a tweak in the rotation may be needed heading into Game 3. There’s no more time to do nothing, as the season is now officially hanging in the balance.
Overview
The Knicks were unable to bounce back from a devastating Game 1 loss and now find themselves deep in a 0-2 hole. The series now heads to Indiana for Games 3 and 4, where the Knicks must turn it around to keep their season alive.
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