Imagine if the Knicks had not been at a complete disadvantage in Sunday’s competition against the Blazers, a fresh team due to the unpredictability of COVID-19.
The Knicks fell 25 points early in the third quarter before rookie Immanuel Quickley’s young legs brought the Knicks back to three points in the final minute.
The Knicks failed to return, but 31 points in Quickley’s career made this Portland 116-113 defeat easier to swallow – especially in the circumstances.
Quickley’s fourth 21-point quarter and his unusual talent for making mistakes on the 3-point line made even Portland superstar Damian Lillard hop on him – apparently upset by his bullying.
Quickley said Lillard complained to him that it should have been a two-shot foul.
“It was a little back and forth,” Quickley said. “He is one of my favorite players. To be able to talk to him back and forth, it’s pretty cool. “
The night started with Lillard, who finished with 39 points, but ended with Quickley, even at a loss.
“It’s impressive. Again, “said Tom Thibodeau.” I think shooting is a huge asset for our team. That’s what we need. It’s getting better with every outing, putting pressure on people. “
Not to give the Knicks a full pass for their awful first half, which ultimately cost them the game, but the first two quarters against the resting Blazers on Sunday night were a little easier to understand given which COVID-19 did.
“A pretty big hole,” Thibodeau said. “We spent so much energy trying to get out of it, and in the end we fell short.
There comes a time when you question the correctness and legitimacy of the ever-changing COVID-19 program.
The Blazers trained for a week after both games against Memphis were canceled because the Grizzlies were in protocol.
A week off to prepare for the Knicks, who took the field for the third game in four nights in the Pacific time zone.
“Moreso this year with COVID, the program is against you and sometimes it’s for you,” Thibodeau said. “It usually balances during the year. We want to have the mental toughness to go through whatever we face. This was the situation they had been in for a long time. You take care of what you have in front of you. We know we need to bring more to a game to win. ”
At first, the Knicks looked tired of the West, without enthusiasm, without passion, looking very different from Thibodeau’s club that started the trip with a victory in Golden State on Thursday.
The blazers? They looked like lions unleashed from their cages with the top predator Lillard, who hit the first eight shots and had 25 points at the beginning of the third quarter.
“I’d like to think we’ll have fresh legs, but you never know,” Blazers coach Terry Stotts said before the game. We rested. Whenever you are given a few days without a game to work on things on the field and at the same time to rest, it is quite valuable. ”
With Alec Burks hitting five three-pointers and Quickley doing it all, the Knicks screamed back. Quickley took two fouls in three strokes from 3-point attempts at the end of the fourth quarter.
They did it essentially without RJ Barrett, who has an engine that never gives up. But he made one shot in the first two quarters. That’s not Barrett lately, averaging 21 points in the previous six outings. Thibodeau banked him in the fourth quarter and finished with eight points.
The Knicks, who had been the league’s best defensive team, allowed the Blazers 70 points in the first half as they fell 20 points behind. The Knicks looked psychic and mental during that 70-50 half.
Quickley acknowledged that Portland’s free week could have helped.
“You can see how they pushed the ball,” Quickley said. “It’s the way the NBA is now.”
Knicks’ illness in the Sacramento game was taken to the Pacific Northwest. Thibodeau admitted before the game that he saw some signs of “fatigue” with players who did not “finish their cuts or keep their distance”.
“But I liked the fight,” Thibodeau said.
And the coach liked the late fight against Portland again, even in a second consecutive loss that reduced the Knicks to 8-10.
When the four-game trip ends in Utah on Tuesday, the Knicks will have played 12 of the first 19 games on the road. Thibodeau talked about the fact that it is a benefit to create connections.
But for now, the Knicks are hanging on to a rookie who leads the way.