Fourth straight loss for the Knicks, and even the 10th in twelve games. Nothing is going well for Evan Fournier’s teammates who lost 132-115 in Denver. Admittedly, they evolved without their two pivots, Nerlens Noel and Mitchell Robinson, but once again, we did not find the qualities that had made them successful last year. In other words, it does not defend!
After a balanced first quarter, defenseless on both sides, the Nuggets took off thanks to their “second unit”. From +1 (40-39), the gap increases to +22 (66-44) with Bones Hyland and JaMychal Green who take turns in attack to sign a 15-0. In five minutes, the match is folded, and Mike Malone can dismiss his incumbents to drive the point home. Aaron Gordon is dropped, and Nikola Jokic is content to play the others. Will Barton also takes himself for the Serb with a blind pass for Gordon’s dunk. At the break, Denver leads by 23 points (83-60). Tom Thibodeau’s “famous” defense scored 83 points!
The second half will be much more boring. The Nuggets will be content to manage their lead, even to the point of falling asleep. The Knicks take the opportunity to return to -13 at the start of the 4th quarter. Mike Malone dismisses his incumbents to avoid any fright. The gap stabilized again at 20 points, giving way to garbage time in which Evan Fournier and Julius Randle will take part…
WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER
A decisive “second unit”. In a game of attack, the Knicks cracked at the entrance of Denver substitutes. Bones Hyland, JaMychal Green and even Bryn Forbes literally stunned New Yorkers. Only Obi Toppin offered some semblance of resistance before breaking down as well.
Denver, the Knicks’ pet peeve. The Nuggets remain on nine straight wins against New York, and their dominance is even more marked at home: 14 straight wins. The last time the Knicks won in Colorado was in 2008. The coach was Isiah Thomas, and the team was led by Stephon Marbury, Jamal Crawford and Eddy Curry.
TOPS/FLOPS
✅Bones Hyland. What a find from the Nuggets! He always has a smile on his face, and his enthusiasm rubs off on the whole group. In the first half, he sends Kemba Walker on the buttocks, and the room… In the last quarter, he plants a 3-pointer at the siren of 24 seconds when the Knicks had returned to -13. A full match: 22 pts, 6 rebounds, 3 wt in 25 minutes!
✅The Barton-Gordon duo. The strength of the Nuggets is its permanent cuts. The outsiders spend their time running to the circle, crossing each other, and Will Barton and Aaron Gordon have disrupted the Knicks defense a lot with their movements. The two combine 39 points, 15 rebounds, 9 assists on 16 of 24 shooting.
⛔Cam Reddish. Tom Thibodeau didn’t want it, and the young Hawks winger knows it. Complicated in his conditions to express himself, and the former teammate of RJ Barrett is completely lost. In 14 minutes, he misses his two shots, puts two throws. But there is nothing in the game.
THE FOLLOWING
Denver (30-24) : trip to Boston on Friday
New York (24-31) : continuation of the “road trip” Thursday evening on the side of San Francisco
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