The New York Knicks are struggling to find consistency once again, as they were unable to come out victorious without Karl-Anthony Towns and fell to the Minnesota Timberwolves 116-99. New York is now 27-16 on the season and Minnesota is now 22-19.
The Knicks couldn’t stop the Wolves’ hot shooting
The Timberwolves came out firing right away as they strung together one of their stronger offensive performances of the season. Overall, Minnesota shot 53% from the floor and 55% (22-for-40) from three.
The Timberwolves had a few players catch fire at various points of the game and the Knicks had no match on the defensive end. Anthony Edwards recorded 36 points and 13 rebounds while shooting 8-for-13 from three. Mike Conley, who entered the game averaging 7.7 points per game, scored 13 points in 25 minutes, with 10 of those points coming in the first quarter.
Naz Reid couldn’t miss for Minnesota, as he scored 23 points and was a perfect 6-for-6 from three. Despite not having former Knick Donte DiVincenzo, the Timberwolves got major contributions from several key guys, and their lights-out shooting ultimately made the difference.
The Knicks got very little offensive production in the frontcourt
With Towns missing his second consecutive game with a thumb strain, the Knicks were unable to replicate his production from their available frontcourt players.
Precious Achiuwa and Jericho Sims were unable to provide much on the offensive front, as they combined for just six points on 3-for-12 shooting. Sims got the start again and grabbed five rebounds in 19 minutes. Achiuwa recorded nine rebounds and three blocks, but the lack of offensive creativity hurt the Knicks’ scoring flow.
Cameron Payne was a spark off the bench, but inexplicably played very little in the second half
Cameron Payne’s recent hot shooting continued with an explosive first half against the Timberwolves. He scored 18 points in just six first-half minutes and shot 4-for-5 from three, all of which came in the second quarter.
His shooting gave the Knicks a spark early when they were down double figures and he helped them climb back to briefly grab the lead. Despite that, he inexplicably barely saw the court in the second half, as he didn’t enter the game until late in the third quarter and played just four minutes in the second half.
The Knicks could have used Payne more often in this one, as he had the hot hand and gave a noticeably lethargic team some energy.
Overview
The Knicks’ inconsistencies on defense continue to hurt them, and their struggles continue as they have dropped four of their last six home games. They will now have the weekend off before their next matchup on Monday against the Atlanta Hawks at Madison Square Garden.