The New York Knicks can only hope that Saturday night’s all right for fighting.
Fresh off another downer vs. Detroit, the Knicks are gifted with a busy weekend to make things right. It begins with a nationally-televised interconference tilt on Saturday night, as New York hosts the Houston Rockets at Madison Square Garden.
The Knicks were granted rude welcome back from the NBA All-Star break on Thursday night, as they fell to the Eastern Conference-leading Detroit Pistons for the third time this season. The completion of a season sweep at the hands of the pacing Pistons shook further national faith in the Knicks, who lost their Motor City trio by a combined 84 points. Jalen Brunson put up 33 for the Knicks in defeat, which saw New York sink only eight of 35 three-point tries.
Houston likewise returned from the break on Thursday, taking a 105-101 decision from the Charlotte Hornets. Despite dealing with some social media-based controversies stemming from All-Star Weekend, Kevin Durant broke loose for 35 points, which helped the Rockets overcome an early double-figure deficit from the first half.
This game will serve as the first half of the Knicks’ annual interconference couple with the Rockets, as a return trip to Houston is scheduled for the end of next month. The two sides have split each of the last two pairs and each team successfully defended its home floor last year. The last 124-118 decision at the Garden featured a thrilling Knicks comeback, one that saw Jalen Brunson score 17 of his 42 points in a fourth quarter that the Knicks won by a 46-29 tally.
What: Houston Rockets (34-20) at New York Knicks (35-21)
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
When: Saturday, 8:30 p.m. ET, ABC
Who’s Favored: NYK -2.5
Keep An Eye On: Karl-Anthony Towns
Thursday perhaps defined Towns’ rollercoaster sophomore season, and maybe more, in New York: a third-quarter outburst (after taking just three shots in the first half) helped the Knicks inch back into what looked like a hopeless cause but it was far from enough to make observers forget that he was essentially bullied out of the paint on a night where the Pistons were missing two primary post men. A dangerous chance at redemption awaits: even with Steven Adams done for the year, the Rockets still boast four different men pulling in at least six rebounds a game and lead the league in second chances, a downright horrifying notion with Durant and more on the floor. Primetime is the whole reason Towns was brought in. The Rockets’ visit is the latest opportunity to justify the massive price that the Knicks paid for him.
Rocket to Watch: Kevin Durant
Another relatively embattled All-Star, Durant is facing a landmark visit to Manhattan: this will mark the first time that Durant’s sneakers touch MSG hardwood in four seasons, back when he put up a triple-double for the Brooklyn Nets. With the exception of what digitally transpired at the All-Star Game, Durant’s new endeavor in Houston has gone fairly well despite the continued absences of Adams and Fred VanVleet and he got the crucial stretch run (one where the Rockets are caught a post-Oklahoma City/San Antonio logjam where the West’s third and sixth-places are separated by one game) off to a sterling start by scoring the last 10 points on Thursday to secure a win over the surging Hornets. A road win over the Knicks would keep the momentum rolling and send a statement that the Rockets are far from exhausted.
They Said It
“Our offense is our offense. It’s been that way all year. So we have our system, and we’re going to, regardless of who’s in the game or not in the game, we run the system that we have implemented for our team to the best of our abilities.”—Towns on his role in the Knicks offense (h/t Jared Schwartz, New York Post)
“C. Somewhere in the middle. “We played up and down to the level of our competition a little bit too much at time. We want to be consistent no matter who we’re playing. Regardless of seeding… it doesn’t really matter as far as that. The big part is being as healthy as we can be and playing the right way.”—Rockets head coach grading Houston’s season to date (h/t Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson)
Prediction
The modern Knicks have done a solid job of never letting things get too out of hand but things have inched dangerously close to oblivion at several points this year. Falling to the conference leaders in February is nothing to be truly ashamed of but if the Knicks are going to truly prove themselves as contenders, they’re going to have to do something special against another group with plenty to prove. Doing so in front of a hungry crowd should work wonders for New York, which has another opportunity to solidify its current state now featuring Jose Alvarado and Jeremy Sochan.
