Knicks Play for Their Lives, Come Out Strong

ATLANTA — The Knicks asserted they’re fighting for their playoff lives.

And you could really see it in their performance.

This time, it wasn’t just Jalen Brunson who took charge. His teammates stepped up, particularly Karl-Anthony Towns, who notched a triple-double, and OG Anunoby, who contributed a double-double. The Knicks triumphed over the Hawks 114-98 in Game 4 at State Farm Arena, tying the series at 2-2 and heading back to New York.

Brunson came off the bench and had to leave for a bit after Dyson Daniels landed on his ankle, with 10:29 left in the third. When he returned—around 5:38 left in that quarter—the Knicks had built an 18-point lead. During his absence, teammates including Josh Hart, Anunoby, Towns, Jordan Clarkson, and Jose Alvarado all helped boost the score.

Towns had an impressive night, ending with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists. Five of those assists came in the third quarter alone.

This marked Towns’ first-ever playoff triple-double, making him the fourth Knicks player in history to achieve such a feat, alongside legends like Walt Frazier and Dick McGwire.

There were no significant turnarounds this time; no late-game meltdowns.

In fact, among both teams, this felt like the most straightforward game of the series.

The Knicks initially took the lead early—holding it since 6:40 in the first quarter.

From the start, the signs showed the Knicks were fired up.

Towns executed a clever fake and made an impressive no-look pass to Hart, who made the cut. Hart then kicked it to Anunoby, who swung the ball back to Brunson for a wide-open three-pointer.

Brunson’s shot, which he made when the Hawks called a timeout with 6:54 left in the second quarter, pushed the Knicks ahead by 12 points.

This kind of offensive flow had been rare in this series, but it resurfaced just when the Knicks needed it most, sustaining a well-rounded scoring effort.

Anunoby was exceptional, netting 22 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. He connected on back-to-back threes in the second quarter as the Knicks began to pull away.

Hart also contributed with 10 points, nine rebounds, and three assists. Notably, Mikal Bridges scored eight points after coach Mike Brown kept him in the starting lineup following a benching in Game 3. However, he only played briefly before staying on the bench for the rest of the match.

Ultimately, Brunson wrapped up with 19 points on 7-of-19 shooting, but had six turnovers in the process.

Hart seemed to bounce back after an earlier struggle, scoring most of his points in the second quarter, helping the Knicks widen their lead significantly.

He made a strong play, stripping Nickel Alexander-Walker, and then dunking to extend the lead to 51-35 before a Hawks timeout with just 2:42 left in the half.

After another layup with seconds to go in the second quarter, Hart celebrated, pumping his chest and shouting toward the Knicks’ bench.

His intensity seemed to elevate the entire team.

Alvarado, stepping in for Landry Shamet, who didn’t play that night, added six points off the bench and even engaged in a brief scuffle with Mohamed Guay, resulting in a technical foul for Guay.

The Knicks managed to restrict the Hawks to 41.5 percent shooting overall and just 24.4 percent from beyond the arc.

CJ McCollum, despite being well-defended by the Knicks, managed 17 points but fell short of his previous performances in the series.

Jalen Johnson struggled as well, hitting only four of his twelve attempts.

This was a decisive win on both ends of the court, a performance the Knicks had been missing throughout the series.

It’s a style they should aim to maintain moving forward.