Jose Alvarado provides a huge lift to the Knicks in a strong victory against the Celtics

BOSTON — Jose Alvarado made his presence known late in the third quarter.

After a switch, he found himself guarding Celtics star Jaylen Brown. Realizing there was a size mismatch, they tried to get Alvarado back into the paint. Standing at just 6 feet tall, he certainly didn’t shy away. He made contact, observed Brown’s shot, and capitalized, then headed to the Knicks bench for a nice flex. That marked his first steal with the team and was a highlight in a strong debut during Sunday’s pre-Super Bowl game, where the Knicks triumphed 111-89 over their rivals, the Celtics.

Alvarado tallied 12 points and two steals while shooting 5-of-12 in 25 minutes. His other steal was just as exciting. After missing a corner three-pointer, he quickly recovered, sneaked behind Brown for a strip, and scored a layup while directing some excitement towards the Celtics bench.

Welcome to what people call the Alvarado experience.

The energy he brought, especially on defense, was exactly what everyone expected. His performance helped Jalen Brunson, who scored an impressive 31 points, as the Knicks took down the Celtics.

With this victory, the Knicks (34-19) are now tied with the Celtics (34-19) for second in the East. Notably, the Knicks were without OG Anunoby due to a sore toe, marking his second consecutive missed game. Thus, New York’s leading defender Mikal Bridges had the job of trying to contain Jaylen Brown, who struggled significantly, hitting only 11 of 25 shots.

Karl-Anthony Towns made his return after missing a game due to an eye injury that required 16 stitches. He even sported goggles, the same type used by Amare Stoudemire and currently worn by the Knicks, but it seems they didn’t work out well. Towns ditched them by the second half and ended with just 11 points on poor shooting performance.

The Knicks had previously faced a disappointing defeat against the top-ranked Pistons, which dampened their offensive flow. However, they quickly regained their rhythm in Boston, racking up 35 points in the first quarter with Brunson leading the charge at 15 points.