kemba walker

Knicks making Alec Burks full-time point guard, what will he bring to starting five?

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New York Knicks, Alec Burks

The New York Knicks announced a massive change on Monday regarding the starting point guard position, formally held by Kemba Walker, their free-agent acquisition. Walker has struggled considerably in recent days, recording double-digit points just once in his last five games. In fact, the month of November has treated him poorly, shooting 39% from the field and a measly 29.6% from three-point range.

Head coach Tom Thibodeau announced that Alec Burks will be taking over the starting point guard job, as Kemba walker was dropped from the rotation, making him a depth piece.

What does Alec Burks offer the Knicks’ starting team?

Burks is an intriguing player, having experience at guard and forward. At 30-years-old, Alec signed a three-year, $30 million deal this past off-season with New York, after averaging 12.7 points and 2.2 assists during the 2020-21 season. He shot 42% from the field and 41.5% from three-point range, and he’s finishing even more consistently this year.

Over 20 games this season, Burks is averaging 10.5 points over 22.3 minutes, slightly less than his statistics a year ago, but he’s more efficient shooting. He’s connecting on 42.6% of his shots from the field and 45% of the shots from deep, giving him far superior numbers compared to Walker.

In the month of November, Burks is shooting 47% from three-point range and 43.9% from the field, recording double-digit points in five of his last six games, including 23 points in the team’s most recent victory over the Atlanta Hawks.

The biggest difference between Burks and Walker is the defensive effort. Burks is a bit taller at 6’6″ and 214 pounds, playing more resilient defense and offering more energy. When Walker is failing to score efficiently, he’s virtually useless on the court, which disrupts the flow of the team, especially with power forward Julius Randle.

In Burks’s first game as the starting PG, three of the Knicks’ starters recorded double-digit points, including 20 from Evan Fournier and 15 from RJ Barrett. Randle finished with just eight points, but contributed 11 rebounds and played adequate defense.

The efficiency and production of Burks allow the second team to feature in a normal role, whereas they were forced to pick up the slack in recent days due to the starting team’s deficiencies.

While this change comes as a surprise, Thibodeau had to make a move, with Kemba struggling so much to develop chemistry with his new teammates. In addition, the Knicks are dead last in fast-break points when Walker is on the court and an unsustainable statistic that has significantly burdened the team.

Knicks should make big shift at point guard against Nets

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knicks, kemba walker

The New York Knicks need more firepower on offense to start games, especially with the inconsistencies of Kemba Walker and Derrick Rose currently dealing with an ankle injury. Walker has struggled to open the year with his new team, averaging 11.7 points, a career-low over 24.5 minutes. Walker may be hitting 41.3% from downtown this season, but in the month of February, he’s connected on just 29.6%.

Ultimately, when Walker isn’t producing on offense, he’s virtually useless. Considering his defensive game-plan is entirely reliant on drawing charging fouls, Kemba’s value plummets the second he’s not knocking down shots at an efficient rate. However, second-year guard Immanuel Quickley has become one of the team’s better on-ball defenders, utilizing aggression and shiftiness to create bad shot opportunities for opponents.

Quickley has been a well-rounded player this season, averaging 9.3 points and shooting 36.6% from deep on the year. However, in November, he’s hit 40.8% of his shots from three and 44.2% from the field. In fact, he’s recorded double-digit points four times in his last five games, making a significant impact not just as a score, but as a facilitator.

The Kentucky product posted seven assists in the most recent win over Atlanta, showcasing his vision, especially in transition. The argument revolves around Walker losing starting minutes in favor of Quickley, but head coach Tom Thibodeau may not want to disrupt his chemistry with Obi Toppin, who features primarily on the second team.

Separating Quickley from Toppin may be a poor move, but having him develop chemistry with Julius Randle may be more beneficial for the team’s production in the first half. The starting five have struggled so badly at times this year, the second team has been forced to supplement deficiencies, which is not a sustainable strategy.

Some might argue that Walker sitting out against Atlanta gave the Knicks an advantage, as Alec Burks filled his spot with the starting five. Burks had an incredible performance, posting 23 points and seven rebounds over 39 minutes. The starting team as a whole actually performed better, as Evan Fournier contributed 20 points and RJ Barrett 15. It is starting to become obvious that Walker is holding back the squad from reaching their potential, due to a lack of poor facilitation and shot selection.

Against a Brooklyn Nets team that is known for its offensive prowess, they need to start off strong, which may promote Quickley earning more minutes to open the game over Walker.

Do you think that Quickley should be earning more time on the floor? Comment here!

Should the Knicks be reducing Kemba Walker’s minutes?

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knicks, kemba walker

The New York Knicks played a dominant game against the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday evening, and one interesting factor that led to a more prominent defensive performance was the loss of point guard Kemba Walker, who elected to skip out on the game due to maintenance.

After the team was blown out by the Pheonix Suns, Walker indicated that needed to grow, and his squad did just that with him watching from the bench.

“It’s a great learning experience,’’ Walker said after the blowout loss to the Suns. “It’s a great team out there. We need to grow as a team.’’

Kemba has struggled considerably this season, scoring a career-low 11.7 points, 3.1 assists, 2.6 rebounds, and shooting 42.9% from the field. Overall, Walker has been a shell of his former self, primarily due to a lack of chemistry and experience with his teammates. However, he’s posting the worst +/- of his career at -6.8, as the Knicks have lost their identity at times as an elite defensive team.

However, with Walker riding the bench against Atlanta, the Knicks relied heavily on some of their youth players, including Immanuel Quickley and Quentin Grimes. Both played fantastic press defense, getting in the face of their assignments and forcing tough shooting opportunities. This led to just 90 total points from Atlanta, a team that hadn’t scored less than 100 since November 14 against the Milwaukee Bucks, when their seven-game win streak started.

The question needs to be asked: Are the Knicks better one Kemba Walker isn’t on the floor as often?

In the absence of the veteran PG, Alec Burks stepped in to fill his role, posting 23 points with the starting five, hitting 7-of-17 shots from the field and 4-of-7 shots from three-point range. Burks also contributed seven rebounds and three assists. Overall, he was far better on offense and provided adequate defense in combination, which helped the Knicks post a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter.

In the month of November, Walker has started in 12 games, in which the Knicks have lost eight, winning five. New York has won despite his lackluster offensive efficiency, posting double digits in the points category just once in those five wins. He’s also shot just 29.6% from three-point range in November, an insufficient number that isn’t a reflection of his regular-season total, which sits at 41.3%. Walker started off extremely hot in October, posting double-digit points in every single game, but has since tapered off in a significant way.

There’s an argument to be made that Immanuel Quickley should be earning more minutes, which should be taken away from Walker’s playing time. Looking at Quickley, he offers more as a defensive player and has also been extremely efficient this month. In November, Quickley is hitting 45.5% of his field-goal attempts and 43.8% from three-point range, recording double-digit points in 8-of-14 contests.

In fact, over his last five games, he has recorded a low of nine, which came against Atlanta on Saturday evening, and a high of 16 against Phoenix. Quickley has also been far more efficient as a facilitator, recording seven assists against Atlanta in the win.

Do you think that Walker should forfeit minutes to Quickley in the future? Comment here!

Pressure mounts as shorthanded, out of sync Knicks face soaring Hawks

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knicks, julius randle

The embattled New York Knicks will go into last season’s playoff rematch severely shorthanded against the soaring Atlanta Hawks.

The Knicks will be without Kemba Walker (rest) in the second night of the back-to-back schedule. Walker will join Derrick Rose (sprained right ankle) and Taj Gibson (sore groin) on the sidelines. Nerlens Noel, who limped Friday night in their 118-97 loss to the red-hot Phoenix Suns, could join them as he is listed as questionable to play with a sore right knee.

The Hawks are coming off a 132-100 rout of the Memphis Grizzlies also on Friday night. It was their seventh consecutive win after a 4-9 start.

“You don’t win seven games in a row without playing good basketball and being connected,” Hawks coach Nate McMillan said after the game.

It’s a stark contrast to the Knicks’ current temperament.

When Evan Fournier and Walker joined in the offseason, there was an inflated expectation that the Knicks would be better than the team that Hawks tossed in the first round in just five games. But so far, the Knicks’ current 10-9 record suggests otherwise.

The starters had their moments in their last few games, but their inconsistencies have been perplexing even to Tom Thibodeau, whose hallmarks of defense and disciplined play can’t be found in this current team.

“Overall, we didn’t play well. So, it’s on all of us. It’s not on any one particular person so we have to do a lot better,” said Thibodeau of their lackluster performance against the Suns.

Thibodeau sounds like a broken record with this answer.

In the Knicks’ dispiriting loss to the Suns, it was clear that the gap between them and the elite teams in terms of talent and cohesiveness is so wide.

Clearly, there’s something wrong with the Knicks.

Julius Randle only shot eight attempts and finished with a season-low nine points. Randle, the hub of the Knicks’ offense last season, was not in his element despite having no lingering health issues.

“I feel great. My body, legs,” said Randle, who kept his answers to short, one-liners.

In contrast, the Suns’ star Devin Booker torched the Knicks with 32 points and cooked early with 21 first-half points. Randle’s trainer Tyler Relph shared an interesting observation on Booker’s fourth 30-plus point game at the Garden.

“27 shots — got involved early and often… [The Suns] got their best player in great rhythm,” he replied on Twitter.

The Knicks had lost their edge when they entered the season with high expectations. But is it fair to wonder if Thibodeau is also losing grip of this team?

Earlier in their struggles, Randle said the intentions and their hearts are in the right place. But their execution isn’t.

Does Thibodeau’s read and react offense need more structure to sync their staring unit and make everyone happy? Or do the Knicks need a shakeup?

In their second loss to the Eastern Conference’s worst team, Orlando Magic, last Nov. 17, Randle had an interesting postgame interview when he said it felt like a bit of weird out there on the court.

When asked why they had lost last year’s identity under Thibodeau, Randle said he was clueless.

“I don’t know, man. It’s just me being completely honest with you. I have no clue,” Randle said. “Thibs still comes in and does a great job giving us game plans and all that different type of stuff. I really think it’s just the details. Maybe it’s the little things that are hurting us right now.”

Since then, the Knicks remained inconsistent, alternating wins and losses in the next four games.

Fournier, who openly talked about his gripes of not playing in the fourth quarter and the lack of ball movement, was consciously and heavily involved in the offense early in the games to get him going but with mixed results. He had double-digit shot attempts in three of their last four games, averaging 12.3 shots in that span. When Fournier was hot, the Knicks rolled with two wins in their previous four games. But when he’s not, it ended up with losses. 

Against the Suns, Fournier was 4 of 15 after a torrid start. He did not see action in the fourth quarter for the ninth time under Thibodeau. It marked the most fourth-quarter benching in a single season in his career. 

Meanwhile, Walker will miss his second game this season due to rest. The New York native is averaging career-low numbers across the board except for shooting percentages.

Fournier and Walker were brought in to ease Randle’s burden. But it has become a bigger burden for Randle to co-exist with them.

When Randle was asked if there’s extra motivation in facing the Hawks, his answer was short but not sweet.

“No, it’s just another game,” Randle said, “another game on the schedule of 82 (games).”

But it’s not just another game. It’s a critical game for the Knicks as they enter the 20th game with chemistry issues still compounding their injury woes. It’s still early in the season, but as Randle said: “NBA games come fast.”

Thibodeau will be reminded of his remarks after their 12th game of the season.

“You know what they say — when it’s 10 games, you say we need 20. When you get to 20, you say 30. When we get to 30, you say 40, and then before you know it, the season’s over,” said Thibodeau referring to how much time do his starters need to gel. “So, that’s a bunch of bull—t.”

Win or lose, Thibodeau will have another interesting postgame presser for sure.

Follow this writer on Twitter: @alderalmo

2 players who are dragging the Knicks’ first team down

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evan fournier, knicks

The New York Knicks have identified themselves as an inconsistent team, losing three of their last four games and dropping an embarrassing one to the Orlando Magic on Wednesday night. In the defeat, the starting team once again came up short, as two of their primary starters recorded just 10 points combined. Julius Randle logged 13, and RJ Barrett contributed 17 but missed all seven of his three-point attempts.

Randle commented after the game regarding the team’s lackluster performance, indicating they are still trying to find their rhythm.

“It hasn’t been great,” Randle said of his play this season. “Like I said, a lot of this stuff is rhythm, trying to find each other out. I think it’s been exactly how the season went. There’s been good days and there’s been not great days. That’s pretty much who we are right now. We’re not a consistent team, a consistent basketball team yet, but we’ll get there.”

Randle hasn’t seemed like himself at times this season, but two players have made life increasingly difficult for him.

Two players dragging the Knicks down:

1.) Evan Fournier

When the Knicks acquired Evan Fournier via free agency this past off-season, they envisioned a high-profile scorer who could replace Reggie Bullock and contribute more as a creator. However, Fournier has been disappointing lately, recording double digits in just one of his last four contests. Evan has shot below 33% from range in all five, making little to no impact.

If Fournier isn’t contributing on offense, he’s rather useless considering his defensive qualities. He’s slow to react to ball carriers and relies on steals to provide any positive metric. On the season, he’s shooting 35% from deep and averaging 12.2 points per game, far less than the Knicks expected when they initially signed him. However, it is a long year, and there’s plenty of time for him to find his groove, but it starts with simplifying things.

The veteran guard has found himself running in circles, trying to find the right spot on the floor, which has confused his teammates and put him out of position at times. Fournier needs to settle in the corner and simply offer a kick-out option for the primary playmakers like Randle — his chicken with his head cut-off strategy is doing more harm than good.

Until he finds his place within the starting team, the Knicks will continue relying on the second unit to supplement deficiencies. This is clearly not the elite defensive team we experienced last season.

2.) Kemba Walker

Speaking of inconsistent, veteran point guard Kemba Walker has found himself struggling in various categories. Over the past five games, Walker has recorded two contests with double-digit points, but another two with five points or less. Against Orlando, one of the worst teams in basketball, he contributed five points and shot 33% from deep and 28.6% from the field. With an All-Star caliber player providing little to nothing on offense, he’s virtually useless given his defensive qualities.

The Knicks have two players in Fournier and Walker who aren’t producing at an efficient level, and given the fact neither are considered offensive-minded players, this has left a significant void and presented a significant vulnerability.

The problem is, if Tom Thibodeau tries to change the player combinations and dismantle the second team, they will disrupt the only consistent portion of their squad at the moment. They need to let the starting unit figure things out on their own without making too many changes.

Thibodeau blames himself as Knicks fall to Magic again: ‘That’s on me’

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tom thibodeau, knicks

The Knicks‘ starters have taken a lot of heat already. New York coach Tom Thibodeau shielded them and took ownership this time.

Two nights after showing endgame grit in a gutsy win over Indiana Pacers, the Knicks crumbled in crunch time as they lost for the second straight time to Eastern Conference’s bottom-dweller Orlando Magic this season.

Errant passes by second-year guard Immanuel Quickley, hero of Monday’s win, and veteran Derrick Rose doomed the Knicks. The Magic pounced, and they escaped with a 104-98 win Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden. Two of Orlando’s only four wins so far this season came on the Knicks’ home floor, a rare occurrence as the Magic have never done this since the 2017-18 season.

“Unfortunately, we beat ourselves. Our turnovers hurt us. The second shot hurt us. We’re capable of playing a lot better than we did. We give them credit. They played well. They played hard. We didn’t,” Thibodeau said. “I have to do a better job getting them ready. That’s on me. We’ll take a good look hard at it.”

The Knicks committed 18 turnovers, with the last two hurting them the most.

Terrence Ross intercepted Quickley’s lazy pass and converted it into a breakaway dunk as the Magic grabbed the lead, 95-94, with 2:56 left. Quickley atoned for his mistake with a feed to RJ Barrett for the Knicks’ last lead, 96-97. But Orlando went on a 9-2 closing run, sealing New York’s fate with a Wendell Carter Jr.’s alley-oop slam off Rose’s turnover in the final 30 seconds.

The Knicks slid to 8-7, and with 15 games in, the disturbing trend of inconsistent effort from the starters continued.

New additions Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier combined for only 10 points on 4 of 13 shooting and were reduced to spectators again down the stretch. Thibodeau went small in the final 3:42 when Julius Randle replaced Mitchell Robinson with the Knicks up, 94-91. They went super small when Rose was re-inserted for Obi Toppin, who was spectacular with a season-high-tying 14 points off the bench.

It backfired.

Randle did not log in a single attempt. He had a steal, but Rose turned it over.

Game over.

“It’s tough. It’s a lot to fix,” Randle said. “Sh*t’s not going well for us right now.”

Randle finished with only 13 points on 11 shots and contributed three of the Knicks’ 18 turnovers which the Magic converted into 21 points. The starters went into another lull in the third quarter before the second unit led by Toppin picked them up. The Knicks’ bench reinforced by Barrett transformed an 11-point deficit into a five-point lead on a Toppin jumper with 6:33 to go. But the Knicks could not hold it down. They gave up a combined 36 points on second chance and transition baskets.

Their defense, particularly the starters, is not as connected as last season. But it was expected as they replaced the previous season’s defensive-oriented backcourt of Elfrid Payton and Reggie Bullock with more offensive-minded players. The projected firepower addition that should compensate for the defensive regression has yet to pan out consistently.

Almost a quarter into the season, Thibodeau is still searching for the right combinations. But it’s hard to build chemistry with the constant mix and matching of lineups.

“It’s all part of it. The good thing about it is you have depth. Sometimes, the tough thing is trying to figure out who’s going well and that sort of thing,” said a defiant Thibodeau, who hinted before the game that the starting lineup would remain intact for the foreseeable future. “Hey, look, we’re capable of doing better, and we have to. Our only way out is we got to work our way out of this.”

Where do they start?

“The first thing you have to do is eliminate the ways in which you beat yourself,” said Thibodeau referring to their defense, rebounding, and low turnovers. “That’s got to be the priority.”

Thibodeau forgot one more thing. Consistent effort.

Follow this writer on Twitter: @alderalmo

Amid Knicks’ struggles, Tom Thibodeau stays positive: It’s a long season

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New York Knicks, Tom Thibodeau

A recent slide has dimmed the glow of the New York Knicks‘ 5-1 start.

Losers of three of their last four games, the Knicks’ celebrated offseason moves are now being questioned. Julius Randle, who rose to become the new King of New York last season, is getting vilified like it’s 2019 all over again. The Knicks’ reloaded starting lineup has raised more questions than answers.

For two straight games, their starters struggled to show any semblance of cohesion. After they teased with a dazzling start in Charlotte, they regressed as the game progressed.

Thibodeau, who lost his cool following their meltdown against the defending champion but shorthanded Milwaukee Bucks last Wednesday, refused to point fingers this time.

“It’s not a one-person thing,” Thibodeau said when a reporter asked what’s going on with Randle. “It’s our group. We gotta function well together as a group and so we gotta bring the best out in each other. So, everyone has the responsibility to execute, to share the ball, to be in the right spots. That’s what we have to do. When we do that, we’re very good on offense.”

Except for his yeoman’s job in Philadelphia, Randle had underperformed in the Knicks’ last three losses. In those games, Randle averaged only 15.0 points on a 36/29/55 shooting split. His other numbers are also down — 6.7 rebounds, 4.3 assists against 3.3 turnovers.

But it’s not only Randle.

There’s also the $78-million man Evan Fournier, who asked for more ball movement after struggling to get rhythm shots in the Knicks’ current slide. Through seven games in November, the Frenchman is only averaging 9.1 points on a 39/23/73 shooting split.

RJ Barrett has cooled off, too, after a string of five 20-plus point games. His sudden downward trend has hurt the Knicks most in their last three losses. He didn’t even reach double-digit scoring in those games and averaged just 5.7 points on an atrocious 23 percent shooting, including going 1 for 11 from downtown.

“It’s a long season, players go through these [struggles],” Thibodeau said. “I’m a big believer in being mentally tough when you face adversity. So, oftentimes, ‘hey look you just got to work your way through it. You never know when it’s going to change in the next play.’ But get back to the hustle part of it. Usually, that’s what gets you going.”

When they are not shooting well, Thibodeau again implores his struggling players to do the other things that contribute to winning: “rebounding, making plays, sharing the ball, screening, moving without the ball, cutting hard, whatever it might be.”

“We can’t get wrapped up in personal dilemmas,” Thibodeau said. “It’s a team game.”

What the Knicks starters are lacking, their bench had plenty of it.

Derrick Rose remains steady. Immanuel Quickley is finally emerging from early-season shooting woes. Obi Toppin continues his giant sophomore leap. Alec Burks is quietly putting together another solid season. Taj Gibson is an ageless wonder. Nerlens Noel, when healthy, is among the league’s top defensive big men.

Together, they have been a bundle of energy. The second unit has sparked joy among Knicks fans as they have inspired several comebacks from double-digit deficits.

“There are plays in which that they were generated from great hustle and I think when you get those plays, they unite and inspire your own team. And so, that’s how we got going with the bench in the third quarter,” Thibodeau said referring to the Knicks’ bench overhauling an 11-point Hornets deficit to grab the lead midway in the fourth quarter.

“When they started hustling and getting deflections and getting stops and we got into the open floor, then we started feeling good and we started playing well. That’s what we need to do.”

Thibodeau still believes his starters can figure this out together. After all, their second unit did not become this cohesively good overnight.

As one wise man once said, “It’s a long season.”

Follow this writer on Twitter: @alderalmo

After sizzling start, ball stops moving in another dispirited Knicks loss

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Evan Fournier was right.

After the Friday morning shootaround, Fournier opined that the lack of ball movement is the culprit behind the New York Knicks‘ recent slump, particularly among the starters.

It seemed the Knicks have that straightened out responding to Tom Thibodeau’s “a bunch of bulls–t” rant with a sizzling start in Charlotte. They built a 16-point lead, 34-18, around Kemba Walker’s familiarity with the Spectrum Center and Julius Randle’s brilliant playmaking.

The first basket of the game was a Fournier corner three off a Randle assist. Then came the second shot — a Walker pull-up three off a Mitchell Robinson screen. As Walker was feeling it, Randle fed him with a fancy between-the-legs pass. Then screened his defender for another Walker three-pointer.

With Walker smoking hot with 17 points to start the game in the building where his NBA legend began, Randle was content distributing the ball. Six of the Knicks’ 13 field goals in the opening quarter came off an assist, four from Randle. Some unassisted field goals came off screens like Robinson did, which did not reflect as assists on the box scores.

“They were making shots. [Kemba] was hot. He was aggressive early. You have to give them credit,” Hornets coach James Borrego said. “We couldn’t find that same rhythm on our side. I don’t think we were getting bad shots. I think we were a little antsy to start the game and they were making shots and we’re not. It kind of snowball there for a minute.”

When there was constant movement and action, the Knicks were hard to stop. And most importantly, they were engaged on defense, flying around to chase shots.

But it turned out it was just a mirage.

After the starters had six assists in the opening quarter, they could only add two the rest of the way. Randle was emblematic of their stalled offense as he only made one assist after the opening quarter.

When the starters checked back in by one by one in the second quarter, the 16-point lead started to evaporate. By halftime, it was down to just nine as momentum shifted to the Hornets.

When Walker began to cool down, Randle started to hunt for his shots. But the Knicks All-Star forward was struggling too with his jump shot missing another couple of attempts. He didn’t score his first field goal until the 2:51 mark of the second quarter — a putback after getting blocked. Then Walker fed him for a three-pointer that had Randle embarking on a personal mini-run with seven straight points. Randle gave the Knicks their last double-digit lead, 54-40.

When Randle dominated the ball, the Knicks’ offense stopped humming. The ball stopped moving. It sucked their energy on defense. What followed next was a couple of missed tough Randle jumpers. The Hornets started to buzz and cut the lead into a single digit.

The Knicks shot only 8 of 24 from the field in the second quarter. Four of those successful shots were assisted, with two coming from Walker, the only starter who recorded an assist in that quarter.

“What I say about this team though is they don’t hang their heads. We stayed resilient. We stayed together. It’s a long game. It’s a 48-minute game. We just stayed with it and it’s gonna turn. That’s what our guys did,” Borrego said of his Hornets.

Gordon Hayward repeatedly beat RJ Barrett off his constant cuts to the basket. By the time Thibodeau yanked his starters, the Hornets had transformed the nine-point deficit into a double-digit lead.

During that stretch, the Knicks starters combined to shoot 4 of 16 from the floor. Randle was 1 for 6, Barrett missed two, Fournier flubbed all of his three attempts. Robinson made one. Walker was 2 of 4. And only Randle made an assist, the lone recorded by the starters in nearly 10 minutes of play.

“We’re not just getting stops. They started making their shots. They started getting all the momentum, and it started going down from there for us,” Walker said.

After the Hornets only made 2 of 17 three-pointers in the first half, they went on to hit 8 of their next 19 attempts the rest of the way. The Knicks defense didn’t know where the attacks were coming from as the Hornets also dominated the paint, 20-8, in the pivotal third quarter.

“I wish I could tell you. That’s been our problem this season,” Walker said of their lackadaisical start in the third quarter. “We gotta find a way. We gotta find a way to be better.”

The bench came to bail them out and even grabbed the lead on an Obi Toppin fastbreak windmill dunk with 5:17 remaining.

It turned out to be their last hurrah.

Thibodeau tried to flip the script and brought his starters back, hoping they could bring it home, which they failed to do in their previous comeback attempt against the Milwaukee Bucks. But it didn’t work either. The Hornets pulled away with a 13-3 closing run.

“In this league, you got to play for 48 minutes. No lead is safe,” Thibodeau lamented. “If you don’t play with the right intensity, in the second half, we didn’t play well. So, we got to fix that.”

“The bench came in and played well but we need everyone playing well. It’s a team. You need your starters to play well. [You need] the bench to play well. You need them to play well together.”

But how can the Knicks, mainly the starters, fix that?

“It’s going to take energy. [It’s going] to take pride. It’s going to take five guys to do it, us five, we gotta figure it out. We just have to,” Walker paused to make a mocking grin behind his mask. “Or else it won’t be good for us. It needs to get better.”

“There’s just so much that goes into energy, man — just communication, body movement. There are things that contribute to that. As I said, it needs five guys at once, not just two or three.”

On Friday night, it was only Walker who had it going. He finished with a season-high 26 points but only had nine after his scorching start. LaMelo Ball, the new Hornets franchise player who replaced Walker, did not shoot well, but he was all over the floor. Ball continued the Knicks’ disturbing trend to give up career highs in their every loss. The 6-foot-7 Hornets point guard grabbed a career-high 17 rebounds, 12 points, nine assists, five steals, and one block.

Walker didn’t muster enough support from the rest of the starting lineup with the worst net rating (-14.4) among the most used five-man lineups (minimum of 150 minutes) in the NBA.

Randle tied his season-low with 10 points on 4 of 15 shooting. He had the second-worst plus-minus (-18) behind Walker’s -23.

Miles Bridges, whom the Knicks passed in the 2018 NBA Draft, badly outplayed Randle. Kevin Knox, who the Knicks drafted three picks earlier in the lottery, turned out to be just an end-of-the-bench player. Bridges’ three-point play off Randle’s foul with 1:31 left added salt to the Knicks’ wounds.

Barrett tied his career-low with only two points, missing eight of his nine attempts. Hayward dominated their matchup with 22 points and seven assists.

Robinson shot 4 of 5 from the field. He had 11 points and six rebounds in 23 minutes, but his limited offensive skill set and the rest of the starters dragged his net rating (-9). His counterpart on the Hornets’ side, Miles Plumlee, offset Robinson’s contribution with six points and 11 rebounds.

After starting the game with a three-pointer, Fournier could only add two more points. The French wing, who demanded more ball movement, only had six attempts and missed four. Terry Rozier roasted the Knicks with 18 points on 7 of 13 shooting.

“Every night, it’s gonna be a different guy until we have enough guys who can really score the basketball,” Walker said. “We need to get some more movement together. I just think it’s still pretty new for us, especially me and Ev (Evan). You know, with two new guys coming in, trying to find our way, trying to find our spots, to find our shots, we just have to figure out how to be consistent.”

Until then, the only thing consistent right now is their stagnant offense and lousy defense.

Follow this writer on Twitter: @alderalmo

Kemba Walker on Knicks’ poor transition defense: ‘It’s fixable’

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knicks, kemba walker

After a poor start to the season, new Knicks point guard Kemba Walker has started to pick up things offensively and is leading the league in three-point accuracy with a 56.8 percent clip, a career-high if he could maintain it.

The addition of Walker and Evan Fournier has catapulted the Knicks’ offense near the top of the league due, in large part, to their ability to hit the three-point shot and make plays off the dribble. Through seven games, the Knicks have the no. 2 offense, producing 115.9 per 100 possessions, according to Cleaning The Glass. That number excludes garbage time and possessions at the end of quarters that are highly likely to end up in a heave.

Walker’s backup Derrick Rose is tied for seventh in three-point accuracy with 50 percent, while three more Knicks players in their regular rotation are shooting above 42 percent from the outside. The Knicks lead the league in three-pointers made with 16.6 per game, up from 11.8 (21st) from last season.

But their supercharged offense came at the expense of Thibodeau’s trademark defense.

When their shots fall, they are a joy to watch. But when they’re not falling, so is their energy on defense. They played with fire in close wins and got burned in a couple of games against lesser opponents— a young, rebuilding Orlando Magic team and an undermanned Toronto Raptors team— both at home.

The common theme was poor transition defense.

Their once-vaunted defense suddenly became vulnerable and penetrable. The Knicks are allowing 109.5 points per 100 possessions, which currently ranks 20th in the league, per the filtered stats of Cleaning The Glass. But when you compare it to last season, it’s not worrisome as their fourth-ranked defense then allowed 108.4 points per 100 possessions, per Cleaning The Glass.

What’s concerning is their lack of bounce and energy in getting back to defense after missed shots and turnovers.

The Knicks are allowing 15.1 fastbreak points per game, ranked 25th in the league. Last season, they had the second-best transition defense, allowing only 10.5 per game. In their previous two games, they have allowed 23.5 fastbreak points to the Raptors and Pelicans.

Their poor transition defense is the main culprit behind their lousy habit of squandering big leads.

Thibodeau points out the league’s penchant for shooting 3’s as a big reason why teams can make up ground quickly.

“You let your guard down and you give up three 3s in transition in a minute, that’s 10 points. It can go quickly. So no lead is safe,” Thibodeau explained Tuesday.

 

They were always on their guard last season, perhaps aware they don’t have the talent to outshoot their opponents.

It’s still too early to pass the judgment. The Knicks have added new offensive weapons and are missing one vital piece of their defense in Nerlens Noel. Thibodeau said the starting unit is still learning to play with each other.

Walker agrees.

“I think we can be better in our transition defense,” Kemba Walker said.

This Knicks team has the talent. Last year’s Cinderella team didn’t have so much. But they made up for it with a lot of effort, which this current Knicks team lacks.

“I thought we’ve had some really good defensive games over the last couple of games,” Walker said. “[Monday] night, not so much. “But that’s on us. It’s fixable.”

And they have to start fixing that against an Indiana Pacers team that had just snapped out of a four-game losing streak with a 131-118 victory over San Antonio Spurs.

The Pacers used a balanced scoring attack to get out of the funk. And they will have a boost against the Knicks as they are expected to welcome back Malcolm Brogdon.

The Walker-Brogdon will be an exciting matchup from the point of attack. Brogdon’s teams have the upper hand, winning six of their 11 head-to-head matchups. They split their last two meetings over the last two years, with the last one in February going Walker’s way. Walker led Boston to a 118-112 win with a game-high 32 points on 10 of 19 shooting, three rebounds, and six assists. Brogdon struggled for 12 points on 5 -f 17 shooting while handing out six assists in the loss.

The Pacers’ starting five of Brogdon, Chris Duarte, Caris LeVert, Domantas Sabonis, and Myles Turner will be a handful.

The Knicks have the talent and depth to counter that. But they need to match it with effort.

Follow this writer on Twitter: @alderalmo

Knicks will debut new city jersey in home game vs Lakers

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The New York Knicks, along with the other 29 NBA teams, have unveiled the new City Edition uniform for the 2021-22 season.

Bronx native Kemba Walker starred in the unveiling video narrated by Knicks legend Allan Houston.

Kith founder Ronnie Feig designed the new Knicks city jersey based on a “mixtape” theme and an ode to the biggest Knicks moments over the last 75 years.

Photo from Knicks unveiling video

The Jersey features the Knicks’ signature black and orange piping over a black base. Change the black base with blue and it’s eerily reminiscent of the Knicks road jerseys in the late 90s. The new city edition jersey comes with checkered side panels and the Nike NYC logo.

Photo courtesy of Knicks

The most interesting details are carried on the shorts. The waistband has the retired Knicks numbers with the Global logo as the central feature on the buckle.

Photo courtesy of Knicks

A Madison Square Garden logo on each leg is a visual homage to the most famous arena, the home of the Knicks and a witness to some of the biggest moments in franchise history.

Photo courtesy of Knicks

The Knicks also announced that the 2021-22 city edition jersey will go on sale on Nov. 15 and will make their debut on November 23 when the team host LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers.

Follow this writer on Twitter: @alderalmo