One happens, two is a slight concern, and three is a trend—but three, in conjunction with falling to the most wounded team in the land, is when a team officially hits the skids.
The New York Knicks lost their third straight game Monday night when the absurdly injured Orlando Magic knocked them off at Madison Square Garden by a 103-94 final.
Jan. 6, 2025: Final
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Game recap and injuries
Despite their latest injury, Jalen Suggs, going down late last week with a non-contact back problem, Orlando limited New York to just 17 points in the third quarter. The second-best defense in the NBA (yielding just 103.2 points per game) put the clamps on Jalen Brunson and company.
Brunson, 28, tied for a team-high with 24 points, but his 8 of 21 shooting, including just 0-1 from three, showcased what a tough offensive night it was for the Knicks. Mikal Bridges was the other Knick with 24 points, and although he shot 50% from the field (10-20), his 1-for-7 mark from downtown is what crushed the home team.
The Knicks shot a porous 4 of 22 from 3-point land, which highlights Orlando’s tough defense. Interestingly, the Magic rank tied for 16th in 3-point percentage against (36.0), but they lead the NBA in 3-point field goals against (just 11.1 relented per contest).
New York didn’t hit a single second-half three until Cameron Payne‘s meaningless bucket with just 8.2 seconds left—well beyond the point it mattered.
Karl-Anthony Towns warmed up before the game but decided to sit this one out with the hamstring injury he sustained in the Knicks’ loss to the Chicago Bulls. Towns remains day-to-day on the Knicks’ injury report (along with Duece McBride who also missed the Magic loss).
Still, the absence of Towns and McBride shouldn’t have led to another loss. This Orlando team is a shell of its former self, and it entered the game without a single double-digit scorer on the healthy books.
Cole Anthony, the son of former Knicks point guard Greg Anthony, scored a team-high 24 points on 50% shooting including 3 of 6 from beyond the arc. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope buried the Knicks with 15 points,
What’s happening with the Knicks?
Honestly, the New York Knicks look tired.
Every Knickerbockers fan understands the current situation. While, yes, the KAT trade remains the correct move, providing the Knicks with the proper spacing and 1-5 pick-and-roll weapon to use in crunchtime, it also left the roster pretty barren.
When Duece McBride is unavailable to play, Tom Thibodeau’s bench moves from thin to utterly hopeless. Precious Achiuwa, Jericho Sims, and Landry Shamet are simply not enough.
When you add in the fact that the Knicks have played their last three games in four days, their past four games in six days, and their last seven in the last eleven days—stretching back to their Dec. 27 win in Orlando—it’s not difficult to figure out what’s happening.
What’s next for the Knicks?
After a single off-day, the Knicks will play their second of a five-game homestand on Wednesday night when the Toronto Raptors come to the Big Apple. While it’ll be nice to get Towns and McBride back into the lineup, the schedule won’t lighten up much.
New York is set to play games on Wednesday, Friday, Sunday, and Monday. After that back-to-back, they’ll play Wednesday and Friday again before finally receiving a two-day stretch of rest.
Thereafter, they’ll get back to it on Monday, Jan. 20, against the Atlanta Hawks at MSG.
Thibodeau would be wise to start sprinkling in Tyler Kolek and others before we reach that point. Considering we’re still in early January, and the team looks this sluggish, signals some troublesome signs.
Leon Rose must hit the phones for some reinforcements, while Thibodeau has to expand his bench.
