ATLANTA — The Knicks and Jalen Brunson once again failed when it mattered most.
The Knicks ended their long road trip in disappointing fashion, losing 121-116 against the Hawks at State Farm Arena on Wednesday after falling behind by 10 points with 2:20 remaining.
Brunson came off a dud at the end of Monday's loss to the Rockets, but was once again part of the collapse. They scored just four points in the fourth quarter and couldn't match Trae Young's strong finishing.
The Knicks captain finished with just 21 points on 8-of-18 shooting, three turnovers and four assists.
When Brunson was asked to rate his play, he responded, “Just like that.” “Because I have my own expectations and I'm not living up to them.”
It was a close game from beginning to end, but the struggling Knicks (3-4) ended their road trip with a sloppy 2-2 record.
Karl-Anthony Towns' try with three minutes left gave them a five-point lead, their biggest advantage in the second half.
They then missed two consecutive possessions, but Brunson made one of two free throws to give the Knicks a one-point lead with 80 seconds left.
With the Knicks (3-4) trailing by one point on perhaps the most important possession of the game, Brunson had a potential 3-point shot against Atlanta's Clint Capela.
But he hesitated and fired the ball into the corner to beat Towns' try, but the shot bounced off the rim.
Atlanta (4-5) got the rebound, dunked in transition and never looked back.
Brunson said if he had it to do over, he would have made the same play.
“All of that was taking a toll on me,” Brunson said. “And KAT has a high release point and no one can challenge his shot. I thought it was a good shot. The ball hit the rim at an angle and they were off to the races.”
Young, who finished with 23 points, reaffirmed his role as the Knicks' nemesis, standing at the microphone immediately after the game and declaring, “I hope the fans in New York get to the exit really quickly.''
After winning the first two games of the road trip, including an impressive finish against the Heat, the Knicks will return to the Garden on Friday against the Bucks on a two-game losing streak.
“We can only get better. Game 6 [of the season]. We had a good game in Miami, but then we were a little disappointed,” said Mikal Bridges, who disappeared with just 10 points in 38 minutes in Atlanta. “I think we got too excited. We have to build on these games. Learning from losses is obviously the worst, but that's what we have to do. That's it.
“It's tough. It started hot and didn't end the way I wanted it to. But learn from it.”
Brunson was locked up by defensive specialist Dyson Daniels. Dyson Daniels is a tall guard who leads the NBA in agility and deflection with his 6-foot-5 size.
Brunson had a tough first half, scoring eight points on 3-of-8 shooting with three turnovers and no assists.
“He's competitive,” Brunson said of Daniels. “You have to give him credit. He competed really well.”
Despite Brunson's struggles, the ball movement was a little better Wednesday than in Houston.
However, the defense and rebounding deteriorated.
The Hawks had 16 offensive boards compared to seven for the Knicks.
Atlanta made 15 treys and shot 45 percent overall.
Young had 23 points and 10 assists.
Rookie Zachary Lizacher dropped a career-high 33 points.
“We were late at the end of a long road trip,” Josh Hart said. “We're kind of letting them play offensively, which is what they wanted us to do, but offensively we weren't sharp. I think we had about 15 turnovers that day. We've got to find a way. This was a winnable game at the end of the game, obviously. It must be done.”
The Hawks are caught between a rebuild and a goal heading into the playoffs.
They have Young, 26, who is in the midst of a max contract extension.
Also starting is 19-year-old rookie No. 1 overall pick Lizacher, who dropped 22 RBIs in the first half Wednesday.
They traded Dejounte Murray for Daniels and a rebuilding piece.
They were without two of their top players Wednesday with injuries in Bogdan Bogdanovic and DeAndre Hunter.
But the Knicks couldn't capitalize on that, and they'd better hope this is just growing pains.
