This is the kind of play that brings a basketball court to life, bringing it to life with enough electricity to power 40 city blocks. It could certainly be Madison Square Garden, but it could also be Rucker Park or the playground on West Fourth Street. Rose Hill, Dradi Gym, and Alumni Hall. It can also be a CYO gym with low ceilings and auditorium flooring.
But yes, this happened to be in the garden.
The game happened to be played on a Wednesday night in front of 19,439 fans with 5 1/2 minutes to go. The Knicks already had a comfortable 93-81 lead, but as usual, they were still playing tough defense.
This will be noticeable in the 2024 NBA. The night before, the Nuggets and 76ers scored 156 points in the first half. The Knicks held their opponents to 100 points or less in 11 games last year. They will soon reach their total of 12 this year, just at the midway point of the season.
This time Isaiah Hartenstein stepped up and blocked a layup from Houston's Jaylen Green. Josh Hart took a carom from Green, dribbled twice and looked up to find Julius Randle running up the left side of the floor. Hart passed to Randle. Then he fed OG Anunoby with a quick touch pass that would have been a perfect fit for Rucker or Westforth. Anunoby made a dunk.
The garden exploded.
“I think the gardens liked it,” Rundle said, “certainly.”
oh yeah. They loved it. There was plenty to see as the Knicks ran away from the Rockets 109-94, celebrating both the 30th anniversary of the season in which both teams battled for the NBA Championship and Tom Thibodeau's 66th birthday. It was a suitable shape. It wasn't always smooth sailing, and it took the Knicks two and a half quarters to get back on track.
But they finally came into their own.
And they were a reminder of why, with a healthy dose of luck and a reasonable amount of health, the second half of this season could be even more fun for the Knicks than they were in the first half, which ended 24-17. Since Anunoby arrived from Toronto, they have won seven of the nine games.
“And maybe if you get two rebounds,” Thibodeau usefully reminded us. [a nine-] It's a game winning streak. ”
Those games — last week's game in Dallas, Monday afternoon's game against Orlando — are gone, and instead of lamenting the missed opportunities, Thibodeau made a bigger point. “We're playing really good basketball in January.”
they are. And they intend to continue doing so until at least the end of the month, starting with Thursday night's home game against the 7-32 Wizards. The play at the top we described was just one of many vivid moments that delighted the gardens. Earlier, Donte DiVincenzo had made a no-look on Randle's dunk for a beautiful steal and fastbreak.
Knicks win. Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post
And on the other end is the defense, which is now a habit. The Knicks still have their spasms and, like other teams, give up half of their 60 and 65 points at times. In 2024, any team can have a night like the Raptors made 20-of-38 on Wednesday against the Heat. But most nights, Knicks brings a bento box.
And for a coach who cut his NBA teeth in the '90s, when defense was the grim and dirty job of the time, what better birthday gift to Thibodeau than a Junior's whole cheesecake with 66 candles? right.
“We will continue to focus on improvement,” he said. “It was a little shaky, but we kept moving forward. We have a lot of work to do, but we haven't solved everything. We still have to keep working.”
But they're currently working with great chemistry sets on both ends of the floor. The Knicks had narrowly escaped the Memphis junior varsity team in the previous two games, taking a 10-point lead against the Magic in the fourth quarter, and knew Brunson was watching in an internal battle, so he would correct this for the worse. It didn't take that long.
But the Knicks found their groove again on Wednesday, which helped, as Brunson returned with 30 points, matching Randle's 31 points and giving the Knicks five points in double figures. Randle was speaking for himself, but thinking back to what he said to Brunson after his two-game sabbatical, he may have been speaking for the entire Knicks world.
“I told him to get his ass back,” Randle said with a smile.
