Thumbnail: Gamba The Bard (@GambatheBard on X)
The New York Knicks overcame a slow start to beat the Utah Jazz 134-117. The starters looked drained at the tail-end of this road trip, but Jordan Clarkson made his homecoming special and helped New York stage a comeback.
The Knicks started the night playing abysmal defense. The Jazz knocked down 14 of their first 18 three-pointers, and it wasn’t serendipity. New York’s defenders couldn’t get on the same page and kept getting stuck on screens.
The second unit sparked the team by showing life on defense. Clarkson and Karl-Anthony Towns breathed life into the offense, keeping the game within reach. Jalen Brunson woke up in the third quarter, but the Jazz killed momentum by hitting timely threes.
It took one more second unit push for the Knicks to finally take a lead heading into the fourth. New York dominated that fourth quarter, putting the game away decisively and putting their worrisome start to bed.
