After dropping their third consecutive game to the Miami Heat Tuesday night, the Knicks have hit a mini-skid, and head coach Tom Thibodeau’s frustrations are starting to boil over.
When discussing Jalen Brunson’s 20-point, 10-assist performance on 5-of-18 shooting in a 109-99 loss to the Miami Heat, Thibodeau was critical of officials.
“It says 10 free throws, but he’s getting fouled. I hate to say it, it’s that simple,” Thibodeau said. “He’s getting fouled. He’s getting fouled. He’s getting fouled. He’s getting fouled. He’s getting fouled. He’s getting fouled.”
As Julius Randle and OG Anunoby continue to be sidelined with injuries, the idea of Brunson not being able to carry the Knicks through all their struggles is becoming a reality. The evidence of this is becoming more apparent with the postseason around the corner.
Despite Brunson’s 61-point performance Friday night against the San Antonio Spurs, one of the worst teams in the Western Conference, the Knicks’ supporting cast did not come through in the clutch as they lost in overtime.
Monday night, Brunson had his worst shooting performance from the floor since the 79-73 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in early March. The role players stepped up, as Donte DiVincenzo dropped 31 points on 11-of-21 shooting from the field and Deuce McBride added 24 points of his own while logging 45 minutes. Yet, New York still found themselves falling short again, now dropping to fifth place in the Eastern Conference.
“He’s not going to play great in every game,” Thibodeau said Brunson. “The challenge is to still find a way to win.”
As the calendar creeps closer to the playoffs, finding those ways to win is only going to become more difficult for the Knicks. As the playoff seeding currently stands, the Knicks would start their postseason run in Orlando against the Magic. New York is 1-3 against the Magic this year, including 0-2 at the Kia Center.
The more disturbing figure, however, is New York’s record against teams over .500 as a whole. The Knicks are 18-28 against teams with a record over .500 this season, the worst record among the top 10 teams in the East outside of the Chicago Bulls. The Knicks have feasted on teams sub .500, as their 26-3 record is the second best behind the Boston Celtics who are 27-3.
Unfortunately for the Knicks, they will be facing the best of the best in the postseason, and outside of a spectacular month of January, they have not shown the ability to consistently hang with the top teams in the league.
While injuries have certainly played a factor in the Knicks record, time is running out for them to get healthy and round into playoff form.
As the frustrations pile up and the postseason is right around the corner, New York is raising more questions than they are answering.
