The Knicks put together what was probably my favorite half of basketball and followed it with a third quarter that would make Jeff Hornacek proud last night that probably cost them the game. That's fine though, this was one where we got to enjoy a lot of strong performances from the youth and the ball movement was fantastic for most of the game. Players trusted each other and made extra passes from start to finish, only running into issues when the Wizards focused on breaking up sets before the Knicks could even get into them. The kids haven't faced much playoff type defensive intensity yet and they struggled against it from the Wizards, but closed strong to salvage the good feelings and the tank all at once.
Mudiay: Emmanuel Mudiay had one of his toughest games during this recent stretch of quality play but still managed a fairly productive night. The good news is that most of the good signs were still there, he just ran into a lot of quality defenders that made it harder to get his looks. Mudiay still finished well when he did have an open lane and knocked down his better looks from long range, he just wasn't able to create his own shot or playmake as well with guys like John Wall and Otto Porter on either side of the pick and roll defense. That's not to absolve him completely though. Mudiay picked his dribble up a few times which hasn't been a common mistake for him but stood out. The starting point also forced more shots than he has in other games, dribbling into trouble without passing options. Manny dropped 15 points on 6 of 15 from the field with 5 boards and 4 assists to 4 TO's. It's a forgivable statline given Mudiay's recent play, just not one you'll want to see a trend out of. There were enough positive signs not to sweat it.
Hardaway: Tim Hardaway Jr found some of his scoring touch last night, but the things he was doing to make up for poor shooting in recent efforts faded out a bit. Hardaway has shown playmaking and rebounding when his shot doesn't fall, now adding that to his more efficient shooting last night would get us back to his early season performance level. Against the Wizards, Timmy started with a three pointer from about five feet behind the line that bricked before settling in and finding his rhythm. The offense started inside-out for Tim and honestly, I feel like that's how most of his best scoring games go. Once he got a couple of bunnies, the three ball started falling and he was in route to a strong scoring line. Timmy dropped 20 points and 2 assists on 7 of 15 shooting and 4 of 9 from three. He did some passing and driving but didn't get the assist or free throw tallies that would propel his impact from good to great. The way the ball has moved for the past two games is really promising for the Knicks lead scorer, he'll have less need to force shots with plenty of quality catch and shoot opportunities.
Hezonja: Mario Hezonja started with a real nice spark but lost some steam as the game wore on. That's not too big of a complaint though, this was a second game where his effort on both ends was visibly turned up a notch and even with the shooting efficiency down his game wasn't overloaded with blatant forces. This is Hezonja we're talking about though, so of course there were one or two Wario moments but the energy and work rate helped make them forgivable. Hezonja was a tough 2 for 7 mainly thanks to missing three balls (1/4 from deep) but salvaged his line by getting to the line 4 times and making every freebie. He also tallied 1 assist, 2 boards and 2 TO's in his 20 minutes of run. This was still one of his better performances as a starter though, partially because he was bad early on and partially because he's seeming to get some chemistry with the starting unit now. His bigger problem is that Damyean Dotson is on fire right now and breathing down Hezonja's neck for that starting spot like Brainy from Hey Arnold.
Vonleh: A quiet night for Noah Vonleh just means that we've gotten used to his steady defensive play, rebounding and periodic scoring. Vonleh's been attacking face-up opportunities more often for the past few games and has been rewarded with some easy looks. He finished 5 of 10 from the field for 11 points, 8 boards and 1 assist over 31 minutes on the floor plus added another 3 point make. Noah's hitting three's, driving, can post up weaker big men and while Mitch has the higher highs on defense, Noah has been the most consistent interior defender for the Knicks. It wasn't a blemish free game though as Vonleh had 4 TO's, a call back to some of his worrisome early season habits. But all in all this was just another solid performance from a player that has been reliable all year amid a lot of inconsistency.
Kanter: Put Enes Kanter in the Vonleh category of performing at about the level we've come to expect at this point. That's crazy to say when a big man drops 13 and 16 off of 60% from the field; but if you're reading this you get it. Kanter's been a demon on the boards and rarely shoots unless he's right at the rack. The Knicks started by feeding Kanter in the post and might have been better off directing some extra touches his way when the third quarter was falling apart. He's actually gotten pretty strong at rewarding cutters that find lanes as he's posting too, picking up a pair of assists along the way. His 25 minutes out there make the gaudy rebounding even more impressive but his defensive play with the Wizards guards attacking off the dribble left so much to be desired that it makes sense he didn't get more time. So yeah, fairly typical performance from Kanter.
Trier: Allonzo Trier seemed to take the PG role seriously and looked to move the ball more. That translated to better second unit ball movement than we've seen in a long time but it also took away some of the attacking that has made Trier such a threat. Zo went 0 for 4 from the field over 15 minutes and even that low FGA count is more forced shots than good attempts. Trier did get to the line 4 times but also struggled there, missing 2. So we get a disappoint 2 points and 1 assist game from Allonzo in a new role that may have thrown him a bit off. This experiment could pay dividends long term though, as Fiz seems to be asking Iso-Zo to distribute more and demonstrate awareness that we've seen glimpses of. Here's one last observation out of left field, Trier probably throws the craziest lobs to Mitch Robinson out of any Knick and I kinda get a kick out of it. Mitch is a freak of nature and watching Allonzo just lob the ball up for Robinson to chase hasn't had the greatest results but it does give us flashes of that Mitch athleticism.
Knox: Speaking of lobs to Mitch, Kevin Knox picked up an alley-oop assist to Robinson handling the rock through a pick and roll that was the highlight of the night. Knox was 3 for 11 on the night but his shooting struggles are easy to set aside because of plays like the lob to Mitch and the other ways that the Knick rookie managed to impact things. The most promising bit to me was how Knox got to the boards. He was active and did well tracking the ball off the rim and through the air, something that's easy to take for granted. On top of that, Kev's been able to get where he wants on the floor even with a bit of awkwardness to his game and handle all season but now he's got his head up to find open players. Knox tallied 8 points, 9 boards and 4 assists to 2 TO's in 28 minutes and most importantly, he was out there for the Knicks best runs in both halves. This is one of the youngest players in the NBA and he's flashed EVERYTHING. The teen has shown jumpers out to the three point line; finishing inside both strong and with a soft touch; rebounding instincts; the ability to find open men; and oh yeah, he also challenged some shots inside last night. The upside is showing and everyone on the roster is getting this young man the ball more often because his impact has been undeniably positive over the last two games...shout out to whoever that Nets scout was that Berman found to be a hater after 20 games.
Dot: I alluded to it in the Hezonja recap, but let's make it official. Damyean Dotson had himself another standout game! Maybe this is the norm...maybe in a couple of weeks, I'll come at it like I did Vonleh and Kanter. This was Dotson's fourth game back in the rotation and his least efficient in that time...he was 6 for 12 from the field and 3 of 6 from three for 17 points, 9 boards and an assist. The production is all the more impressive considering he was out there for 24 minutes. To top off all that efficient goodness, we got his typical high energy and high quality defensive play. Bradley Beal may have gotten the better of Dot on some plays, but overall Beal was forced to work harder whenever the sophomore was in front of him. I've been waxing poetic about this newcomers rebounding instincts since his first summer league run but the value was screaming at everybody last night as 5 of his boards came at the offensive end. This efficiency isn't a crazy outlier from season norms either; Dot's averaging 12 ppg on 47% from the field and shooting 40% from 3 over the 19 games that he has played in. He's also just under 5 boards per game on the year. This might just be who he is...a straight up gem of a find.
Lee: We got our first Courtney Lee sighting last night and it looked like the Lee we've known and loved but with a lot of rust. Lee played smart basketball without forcing much of anything and was quietly productive to the tone of 7 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists in 16 minutes. Lee was just 1 for 4 from the field, making a late 3 pointer to get himself a made field goal. The misses included a wide open fast break lay-up late that would have been brutal under almost any other circumstance but did nothing to break the good vibes of having Lee back out there. While Tim Hardaway provides an emotional leader, Lee was visibly vocal as a calmer presence and example. Hardaway HAS to force some shots in his role of primary scorer; Lee's the guy that's out there to take what the defense gives him and be another positive presence on his own defensive stands. He deserves more time in more important games but in a reduced role for this young team, you can see the value he can bring.
Mitch: Mitchell Robinson only played 14 minutes and it wasn't foul trouble that kept him off the floor. The kid didn't play poorly at all in spite of a modest statline. Mitch had 4 points, 1 board and 2 assists in his limited run but it was his calling card that leapt off the screen and also leaps off the box score. In just 14 minutes, Mitch had 3 blocks including one where Morris pump faked from three then drove across the lane only to be denied a dunk from Mitch. Normally you'd see Robinson pump faked past the shooter or he'd reach during the drive, but he defended with his feet and timed his block perfectly on that attack. The smarter approach defensively kept the rookie at just 2 fouls without taking away any of his efficacy as a straight up road block to the rim. So in spite of a pretty low figure in time played, the hype train just continues for Mitch who's biggest weakness at this point might be literal weakness. On nights where you can't trick him with pump fakes and handling, the only answer to beating his defense is to be strong enough to overpower him.
Fiz: The first thing that stood out to me from last night's game was that Kevin Knox got the ball to handle through screens on his first two possessions. One of those plays led to a made jumper and the second led to that lob assist I mentioned above. This is one of those bits that I've been harping on lately, but you can see the motor on Knox improve when he has his card called early and it paid once again. There are some questionable decisions, but none that are unreasonable just worth asking whether or not they're the best approach. Trier's move to PG didn't get the intended return though I explained why I didn't mind it last night. Knicks twitter had some anger for Courtney Lee getting so much time while he was blatantly rusty and Frank was sitting but I saw the intangible leadership facets that justify this move. Knox playing 28 minutes and Dot playing 24 are both really good signs of Fiz trusting youth, especially because they got all of the crunch time burn. The two real questions come down to over relying on Mudiay on a night that he struggled and under utilizing Mitch in spite of the rookie playing pretty well. Again, I kinda get the logic even if I disagree. Mudiay played 36 minutes and that makes sense when Fiz didn't have Burke plus is giving Frank the DNP treatment. Obviously a solution would be to try Frank at PG while Mudiay is struggling and Trier isn't giving returns; but experimenting with Trier's skillset (which is similar to Burke's) has a clear logic to it and Frank's struggles lately are undeniable. In that same respect Mitchell Robinson's 14 minutes could have more to do with Kanter and Vonleh's productivity as well as the Wizards going small fairly often. Vonleh had to chase Otto Porter around quite a bit and in the second half, going with one big man instead of two was a helpful way to spread the floor when the Wiz turned up their defensive intensity. So yes, there was enough in this game to look at and second guess but there was rationale for everything which is all I tend to care about. It's the inexplicable choices that are hard to accept, not the difficult ones.
you damn troll.
We run NY blood, whole city look like O block mo like No block ya dig, now kiss the loafers 
Not Dotson and a 2020 pick. ... man, fukk no.
