Welcome to the first edition? of what will be a recap blog of every Knicks game. I decided that waiting a whole week to recap a game felt a little silly, so from now on, I will recap the game the day after. Seems a lot more reasonable. And what a game to start doing a postgame recap. It felt like the Knicks completely dominated the Nets. There were moments when the Nets would gain momentum, but the Knicks kept them in check and got a strong team win. With this win, the Knicks tied their season-high win streak, two, and are back on the positive in the win-loss column.
I cannot keep saying it, but OG Anunoby has been the most important player to this team. I was a complete moron when the Knicks traded for him last season because I thought New York gave up too much for him, but I have been proven wrong every single day. OG has been incredible this season, and without him, I don’t know where the Knicks would be. I might have been an idiot saying his trade was bad for the Knicks, but he has proven me right when I said he deserves all the money he wants this offseason. You can easily say he’s getting overpaid, but what he does on both sides of the court cannot be understated.
His defense is one of the best in the league, and it feels like he’s improved so much on the offensive side. I have extreme confidence when he shoots a three, but my favorite part of his game is his standing dunks. It seems like he’s always getting open in the paint and making an easy dunk. OG has been fantastic, but the best part of OG this season hasn’t been his scoring or defense. OG has been hilarious off the court. From the way he dresses to the way he acts, I cannot get enough of OG. He has a lot of Kawaii Leonard in him where I don’t know if he’s trying to be serious or he is just a funny guy.
Another player that I will always give praise to is Josh Hart. Another fantastic game from him as he scored 20 points with 8 rebounds and 8 assists. It was an excellent offensive game all around for the Knicks, as Hart was just one of four players to score 20+, OG, KAT, and Mikal being the other three. Also, Brunson didn’t have his best shooting night, but he had a great passing game, as he had 10 assists to go along with his 12 points. It was a great team win, but we have to worry about KAT’s health for a second game in a row.
https://twitter.com/NBA_NewYork/status/1858329517942562898
That was a hard fall from KAT, and I really question his availability tonight. A big man falling like that is going to take some time for him to feel its full effects. I don’t want to give the Wizards bulletin board material, but the Knicks could probably bench KAT tonight. The Knicks won without him Friday night against the Nets, and the Nets are a much better team than Washington.
Player Stats/Grades:
Jalen Brunson: 12 PTS, 3/14 FG, 0/5 3PT, 10 AST, 5 REB, 2 STL, B-
Karl-Anthony Towns: 26 PTS, 10/16 FG, 15 REB, 6 AST, 1 STL, 1 BLK, A+
OG Anunoby: 24 PTS, 9/17 FG, 3/7 3PT, 8 REB, 1 BLK, A+
Mikal Bridges: 21 PTS, 9/18 FG, 3/10 3PT, 6 REB, 1 STL, 1 BLK, A-
Josh Hart: 20 PTS, 8/13 FG, 3/7 3PT, 8 REB, 8 AST, A
Cam Payne: 9 PTS, 3/7 3PT, 6 AST, B
Jericho Sims: 2 PTS, 4 REB, 1 BLK, C+
Pacome Dadiet: 0/2 FG, 1 REB, 1 AST, 1 BLK, C
As I mentioned before, the Knicks will take on the Wizards tonight. Washington is once again one of the worst teams in basketball. That’s why I think KAT should get the rest day. He will probably be in some pain, so let Jericho Sims and Ariel Hukporti fight it out for the backup center minutes. But knowing Thibs, he will probably play KAT for 45 minutes. The Knicks should win this game as they break their season-high win streak of two to make it three.
SmallDog Sports 
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