Thumbnail: Gamba The Bard (@GambatheBard on X)
The New York Knicks eked out a win against the Indiana Pacers before losing to the Philadelphia 76ers in consecutive games. New York managed to split a pair of sloppy performances that showed signs of fatigue from a long road trip.
The series began with New York defeating Indiana 114-113. Several key players sat out for various ailments, including Karl-Anthony Towns, Josh Hart, and Mitchell Robinson. The Knicks’ chemistry looked messy with two young starters, but their second unit shone as Tyler Kolek and Jordan Clarkson stepped up in extra minutes. Indiana led throughout the action, but New York staged a furious comeback that concluded with a clutch three from Jalen Brunson and a game-sealing steal from OG Anunoby.
The starters returned, but New York turned the ball over even more while losing to Philadelphia 116-107. The Knicks made brutal mistakes and played poor defense all game. They got another second-unit boost, this time from Mitchell Robinson. They kept the game close throughout three quarters before New York ran out of gas, and the Sixers took off.
The Knicks looked like a team that hadn’t been home for a long while, so I’m taking the split as a moral victory. Let’s look at the performances in these less-than-stellar games.
