12 hours later, I finally put pen to paper (keyboard to computer). The Knicks did the impossible last night. The Knicks finally won a clutch game for the first time in my 23 years on this earth. At no point in my life have the Knicks won a game like that. Years prior, New York would have either missed the Brunson/DiVincenzo shot, or Maxey would have made his layup. But things are different now. The New York Knicks know how to close out games, and what a special moment it was. I can’t stop watching highlights of what happened. I’ve watched every angle, broadcast, and fan perspective.
Brunson making that three seemed improbable. It bounced off the front of the rim and somehow went into the basket, reminiscent of Kawhi Leonard in 2019. Then mayhem ensued. A lot of shit happened, causing controversy. Maxey fouled Josh Hart. Brunson fouled Maxey. But most importantly Nick Nurse DID NOT call timeout. The Knicks regain the ball after an Isaiah Hartenstein offensive rebound, and Donte DiVincenzo makes the game-winning three. It was majestic. It was fantastic. It leads to a goddamn “Double Bang” from Mike Breen. I cannot believe in my lifetime that Mike Breen was able to hit the “Double Bang” for the Knicks in a playoff game.
For the “foul calls,” I understand your complaints, Sixers fans. You guys are coping in any way you can to say you got screwed over, but you didn’t. It was a physical game that the refs let the players play. Just because there’s some contact does not mean there’s a foul. You can be physical, and the Sixers were doing all game long with no calls. I understand fans’ complaints, but when the players and organization bitches and moans like it has, it makes them look pathetic. Filing a grievance with the NBA when the calls have been even all series long is hilarious.
Nick Nurse acting like he called a timeout is hilarious. A smart NBA coach should have called a timeout before letting Lowry inbound that ball. Instead, Nick Nurse pump faked a timeout. Then the ball goes loose, and he finally calls a timeout. It’s too bad you can’t call timeouts when the ball is loose. It’s absolutely pathetic that this is the hill the Sixers are dying on.
Then you have Joel Embiid, of all people, complaining about referees. In his press conference, he was crying about the calls, not looking at the reporters in their faces, days after not meeting with the reporters after the game one loss. Embiid has been one of the biggest benefactors of the foul-baiting technique these last couple of seasons and has done it perfectly in the first two games of the series. But so has Jalen Brunson. Embiid and the 76ers are finally getting a taste of their medicine and don’t know what to do. Also, if anything, the Sixers should thank the referees for what happened in game two. Embiid probably should have had two techs for the push on Hart that was not called, and then there was this horrific call where DiVincenzo was clearly fouled, but the call was overturned. That play alone switched momentum for the Sixers and almost cost the Knicks the game.
What would also help in the future is if the 76ers would try a little bit harder. You can complain all you want about there being a foul or not on the inbound to Maxey, but you have to keep playing. Isaiah Hartenstein understood that and came up clutch to save the game. If the 76ers had given an ounce of effort on the offensive rebound that gave the Knicks the lead, then maybe the 76ers could have won.
I mean, that’s pathetic. Embiid and Harris put no effort into getting that rebound, and that’s why the Knicks won and are going to win this series. The Knicks want it more. Even though Jalen Brunson has been horrible in this series, the Knicks continue to come out on top. The 76ers do deserve a ton of credit for taking Jalen Brunson out of the series. It’s shocking how well they have locked up Brunson, and that is the main reason why these games are so close. So far in this series, Brunson is shooting 29% and has been horrible. The Knicks offense is staggering without Brunson, but what the Knicks have done better than the Sixers is the Knicks are always bringing more effort, and their role players actually contribute.
So far this series, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey have dominated the Knicks offensively. I’m not the biggest Embiid fan, but he deserves so much credit for what he’s been doing this series with his injury. He’s had some dirty moments, but he’s been impressive. Embiid and Maxey have scored 131 of the 205 76ers points. That’s really impressive, but the rest of the team has done nothing offensively. Sure, the 76ers are locking up Brunson, but they have yet to match the Knicks role players. The Knicks have seen key contributions from almost everyone that has played. Bogdanovic has hit huge threes to keep the Knicks in the game. Mitchell Robinson and Isaiah Hartenstein continue to dominate the glass. Miles McBride has played stellar defense and had an excellent, gritty play. But the MVP of the series so far is Josh Hart. He has been out of his mind. He played 48 minutes in game two, and his continued effort is why the Knicks won both games. I cannot thank Josh Hart enough for what he has done. All the players I have mentioned are why the Knicks keep winning. Sure, Philly’s two star players are the best players on the court, but the Knicks are playing team basketball to a tee.
The last thing I wanted to touch on was how cool it is that former Knick legends are celebrating like fans at the game. Carmelo Anthony, John Starks, and Latrell Sprewell were awesome all night and were giving their flowers to the players after the game. Hopefully, for the next home game the Knicks have, they can get fan favorite of Knicks Twitter, Kendrick Perkins, to the game so he can celebrate with us as well.
SmallDog Sports 
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