Nothing good lasts forever, and the New York Knicks four-game winning streak is no exception. Wednesday night saw it come to an end at the hands of Donovan Mitchell, James Harden, and the Cleveland Cavaliers in a 115-107 loss at home.

A sloppy back and forth bout saw the two teams tied at 99 all with nearly six minutes to go at MSG. But then Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns passed like ships in the night in a series of questionable substitutions by head coach Mike Brown.

New York couldn’t bring it home with only of Brunson or Towns on the floor down the stretch. And the Knicks’ defensive coverage of Mitchell was a hole in the boat that proved too fatal to patch.

New York drops to 6-5 after winning four straight and six of their last seven.

Let’s takeaway what we need from this one, leave the rest, and move forward.

Mike Brown is a culpable (and accountable) coach

This was a game you can’t recap without pointing to the Knicks’ head coach.

Towns was leading the charge in the second half next to a combination of OG Anunoby, Josh Hart, Tyler Kolek, Miles McBride, and Landry Shamet: the defense was humming, shots were falling, and the deficit seemed surmountable.

Brown elected to pull Andre Drummond into the mix in place of Towns for nearly two minutes down the stretch. They proved crucial, with the Knicks failing to get an edge on Cleveland’s three-point lead.

By the time Towns came back in with two minutes to go, New York needed stops. Brown elected to have his guys blitz Mitchell at the top of the key, opening the lane for Jarrett Allen time after time.

Brown owned up to the mistake in his defensive playcalling, telling reporters after the game: “I kept us in the blitz a little too long. That’s on me.”

Knicks fans aren’t easy to deal with. But we are simple: accountability is the quickest way to win us over. Appreciate you, Mike.

PAY THAT MAN!

You’ll find this section in most articles I write until New York does the obvious and extend Towns at whatever number has influenced this stalemate in contract talks.

I wrote last week that the Knicks are home to a top-10 player at worst. But with every game that passes, Towns climbs the proverbial rankings in my mind.

Wednesday night was no different. Towns finished the loss to the Cavaliers with 21 points, 11 rebounds, eight assists, and a block in 34 minutes of brilliance.

He leads the NBA in double-doubles, total rebounds and rebounds per game. New York is scoring 119.3 points per 100 possessions and allowing 110 with Towns on the floor. No player this season has been more important to their team.

Towns is irreplaceable, so Leon Rose, don’t try to replace him. Pay that man.

Mikal Bridges seat is getting warmer

Another day, another disappointing showing for Mikal Bridges: two points and two turnovers in 17 minutes of play.

Nothing helps when a player is struggling to read the floor and make shots. But to add insult to injury, McBride and Shamet were lights out in comparison.

“Deuce” finished with 19 points, his season-high, on five makes from deep. Shamet added in 12 points, four assists, and two made threes.

Brown was asked after the game about Bridges place in the starting lineup. It’s the first time–to my recollection–he’s sounded noncommittal, if only slightly:

“Mikal is a starter, so it’s not a question of that,” he said. “He’s, like a lot of players, they’ve had their good moments and their not so good moments. Mikal has a proven track record as playing at a pretty high level as a starter in this league. So, for me to make a quote-unquote panic decision and change it right now, we’re ten games in, or whatever we are, I’m not feeling it.”

Brown won’t consider it “right now,” and that’s all you need to take from the quote. If things continue along their current trajectory, I believe he will make a change. This was a notice to Bridges, not typed in all caps, but italicised between the lines.

Bridges didn’t touch the floor in the fourth quarter for the umpteenth time this year. Of all players who’ve logged 250 or more minutes, only Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Draymond Green have scored less.

According to Fadeaway, New York is scoring 103.8 points per 100 possessions and allowing 109.2 per with Bridges on the floor. Without him, those numbers spike to 132.3 and 111.8 respectively–that’s a 29.5 net swing in the wrong direction.

The ice under Bridges has never been thinner. He’ll try to get back on the good foot on Friday, as the Knicks look to get back in the win column against the Indiana Pacers. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 pm EST.