BOSTON – The Knicks can't compete with the Celtics yet.
Despite showing more fights than their previous games at Cleveland and playing better without Mikal Bridges, the Knicks were eventually hit Sunday afternoon at Beantown, 118-105.
The only encouragement moment arrived in the third quarter when Bridges was benched by Miles McBride and New York cut the deficit to four.
However, Bridges was reinserted, Jalen Branson needed a quick rest to begin the fourth quarter, and the Knicks returned to Matador's defense.
The Bridges, which was acquired in five first-round picks in the summer to compete with Boston's Elite Wings, managed just 14 points, but almost half went deep into garbage time. The Knicks were outscored with 23 points in 28 minutes.
Apart from that third quarter stretch, I was on a fight bus with Boston and another Knicks in the afternoon.
Within three minutes of tip-off, Tom Thibodeau's team had already lost 10 coins.
Since the first quarter, the Knicks have allowed 39 points and chased 19 points.
Their suffering this season, Jason Tatum ticked Knik early, finishing a triple-double shy assist with 25 points.
And for the third time in three matches this season, the Knicks dragged in double digits for most of the game. They were playing and carrying it as if they were not part of the same gym.
So, until further notices, the Knicks cannot be classified as candidates. They are taken seriously, too far under the Celtics and Cavaliers. Sunday was the latest example. In three games against Boston, they are outscored with 63 points and are struggling to defend the 3-point line.
Thibodeau tried several adjustments. He placed OG Anunoby on Tatum, not on the bridge. McBride was on the floor too, and after turning the boundary into human, it didn't pay dividends.
The town of Karl Anthony appears to have been lost again in an attempt to protect Boston's screen, allowing Christaps Porzingis to jump into countless open trays. The Knicks Center opened fire in the third quarter, but it looked uncomfortable in the final minutes, appearing to exacerbate the knees with an attempted dunk.
The Knicks had no effective excuses. Josh Hart has returned from two games absent due to knee pain. He finished his triple double shy with 20 points. I also played Anunoby, but it didn't work and was easy to overlook. Their opening night lineup was on the floor.
And like in opening night, the Knicks left Boston with a decisive defeat.
