New York Knicks beat the Toronto Raptors, lose to the Oklahoma City Thunder: Competing with the best

The New York Knicks split a back-to-back featuring the Toronto Raptors and the Oklahoma City Thunder. New York beat the Raptors 111-95, then lost to OKC 103-100.

The Knicks trailed for almost the entire first quarter against Toronto, but the second unit came in and sparked the offense, helping them reclaim the lead. New York built its lead on strong defense, pace, and ball movement. This marked the third-straight game that all starters were in double-digits scoring.

New York showed fatigue against the Thunder at MSG. They struggled to get clean looks and missed the open shots they got throughout a low-scoring first half. Karl-Anthony Towns helped keep the game within reach, so that a scoring push from Jalen Brunson and Landry Shamet could complete a comeback to start the fourth quarter.

Unfortunately, the Knicks’ tired legs and some one-sided refereeing left the Knicks to come up just short. The Thunder clung to a lead, as Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby missed game-tying opportunities in the final ten seconds.

The Knicks completed a brutal three-game stretch in four nights with two out of three wins. They took the defending champions to the brink before finally losing. Let’s review their back-to-back through player performances, because these results call for optimism.

Vs. TOR: 21 PTS (10/17 FG, 1/4 3PT), 6 AST, 13 REB, 1 STL, 1 BLK, 3 TO in 29 mins

Vs. OKC: 17 PTS (7/8 FG, 3/4 FT), 1 AST, 17 REB in 33 mins

Karl-Anthony Towns has bought in, and the results speak for themselves. He played great basketball across the two games, as a force in the middle rather than on the perimeter. OKC surrounded KAT with seven-footers, and he still dominated the glass.

Towns’ defense is the story of the recap. He fouled out against OKC, but his defensive efforts in both games were strong.

Vs. TOR: 12 PTS (5/11 FG, 2/7 3PT), 2 STL, 1 TO in 24 mins

Vs. OKC: 14 PTS (5/9 FG, 0/3 3PT, 4/5 FT), 2 AST, 3 REB in 30 mins

We’ve seen plenty of flashes of Landry Shamet doing more than simply hitting threes this season. But his ability to blow by defenders who expected him to shoot was on full display in both of these games.

Oklahoma attacked Shamet a few times on the defensive end. He fell defending a crossover and picked up some tough fouls. But Shamet responded with a big third quarter.

Vs. TOR: 26 PTS (10/22 FG, 2/7 3PT, 4/4 FT), 10 AST, 2 REB, 1 STL, 1 TO in 37 mins

Vs. OKC: 16 PTS (5/18 FG, 2/5 3PT, 4/6 FT), 15 AST, 3 REB, 1 STL, 3 TO in 39 mins

Jalen Brunson didn’t shoot well, but he accumulated 25 assists in these two games. He didn’t have legs for most of the Thunder game, but made up for it with a season-high assist total.

Brunson closed strong against Toronto, but couldn’t match that against OKC. He had a chance to tie with seconds left, but missed.

Vs. TOR: 11 PTS (4/7 FG, 1/2 3PT, 2/2 FT), 4 AST, 2 REB, 1 BLK, 2 TO in 32 mins

Vs. OKC: 15 PTS (6/17 FG, 1/5 3PT, 2/3 FT), 4 REB in 40 mins

Defense and ball movement defined Mikal Bridges’ game against the Raptors. He didn’t shoot much, but made the most of opportunities.

Mikal switched up and hunted his shot more against the Thunder. Unfortunately, Bridges’ jumper never found a consistent rhythm. His defense remained strong again.

Vs. TOR: 15 PTS (5/6 FG, 2/2 3PT, 3/4 FT), 5 REB, 2 TO in 27 mins

Vs. OKC: 16 PTS (6/17 FG, 4/13 3PT), 3 REB, 3 STL, 2 BLK, 3 TO in 38 mins

OG Anunoby played efficient ball in Toronto, without pressing for offense. He got more opportunities to shoot against Oklahoma City, but didn’t have the same legs on his jumper by that point.

But OG gets props for his defense on everyone from SGA to Holmgren. He couldn’t shut either star down, but he defended them better than anyone else.

Vs. TOR: 12 PTS (6/7 FG, 0/1 3PT), 7 AST, 7 REB, 3 STL, 2 BLK, 2 TO in 31 mins

Vs. OKC: 10 PTS (4/11 FG, 0/3 3PT, 2/2 FT), 3 AST, 12 REB, 1 TO

Toronto may have been Josh Hart's best game of the year so far. He played elite ball at both ends, with defense leading to offense. 
Hart finished the night in Toronto, taking a bad fall, which affected his play the next night.

Hart labored through three quarters, even missing layups he'd typically make. But in crunch time, he toughed it out and made impact plays for the near-comeback.

Some people are above blaming the refs for a loss, but I’m not. The refs gave SGA a no-call when he blatantly charged into Jalen Brunson in the first quarter. It would have been his third foul, so they swallowed the whistle.

Then in the fourth quarter, they called a charge on OG Anunoby that was far more debatable than the SGA contact from earlier. It’s a potential five-point swing that would already change the results before considering how Shai would have performed in deep foul trouble.

But there’s still an important lesson to learn here. The Knicks can hang with anybody! I’ll see you next time, Knicks fam.