ORLANDO, Fla. — It started early in the first quarter with the “MVP” chant for Jalen Brunson.
Playing in his home arena, All-Star Paolo Banchero turned to the noisiest section and told him, rather than subtly, to “shut up.”
But at that moment, Banchero and Magic were unable to stop them. Brunson was outstanding, scoring 20 of his 33 points in the first quarter.
He was doing whatever he wanted, crossing over, changing directions, draining shots, and showing one of his determined game faces.
The problem, which was to be expected given the Knicks’ injury woes, was that Brunson didn’t have help. none.
Then, they quickly caught up with the reeling Knicks, who lost 118-100 to the Magic on Wednesday, a season-high four-game losing streak heading into the All-Star break.
The Knicks were missing six of their top eight players and their injury report was longer than the line at Disney World.
Donte DiVincenzo (hamstring strain) and Bojan Bogdanovic (calf strain) were the last additions.
This situation made Alec Burks the starting point guard and the Knicks’ best offensive player behind Brunson. It wasn’t a winning formula.
After Brunson’s early outburst gave the Knicks a 12-point lead, the bench featuring Taj Gibson and Jacob Toppin was a disaster.
They were up by 20 points in about 6 minutes of the second quarter. The Knicks (33-22) never recovered. It escalated into a Valentine’s Day massacre.
Excluding Brunson, who was understandably being chased by Magic, the Knicks shot just 38 percent. Orlando begged the other Knicks to score, but no one scored.
Precious Achiuwa was the only positive with 22 points and 14 rebounds.
Burks, a new acquisition but an old face from the Pistons, once again shot disastrously (5-for-16). He had 6 hits for 24 at bats in the two games before the hiatus.
The Knicks trailed by 28 points in 30 minutes Wednesday.
Tom Thibodeau also waved the white flag early, removing Brunson for good with 8:21 left.
Banchero scored 36 points, ultimately silencing the Knicks fans who flocked to Kia Center.
The Magic (30-25) have won all three games against the Knicks this season, entering the All-Star break like Winnie the Pooh with honey.
After eight days of rest, at least DiVincenzo, Bogdanovic and Isaiah Hartenstein are expected to return. The recovery schedules for Julius Randle, OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson are even more dangerous and unpredictable.
The Knicks need them ASAP.
