Knicks blown out by Eastern Conference-leading Cavaliers in latest test vs. top-tier team
The Knicks' Karl-Anthony Towns chases the ball in front of the Cleveland Cavaliers' Jarrett Allen during the first half of an NBA game in Cleveland on Friday. Credit: AP/Phil Long
CLEVELAND — For the Knicks, another measuring-stick game resulted in the ruler being broken over their heads.
The test this time was Eastern Conference-leading Cleveland, a team that has sat atop the conference all season long. The Cavaliers entered this game with a chip on their shoulder, looking to not only prove their elite status but get a bit of vengeance against the team that muscled them out of the playoffs two seasons ago.
The Knicks could point to excuses — missing Josh Hart for the second straight game, hitting the road for a back-to-back after an overtime win Thursday — but none would explain away just how bad they looked in a 142-105 loss.
The Knicks (37-19) dropped to 0-6 against the three teams with a better record than they have, and for the fourth time, they did so in humbling fashion, blown out from start to finish.
The Knicks trailed by as many as 33 points before coach Tom Thibodeau finally emptied the bench at the start of the fourth quarter. In 69 seconds, the Cavaliers ran off eight straight points for a 39-point lead — the largest deficit the Knicks have faced this season. Their deficit grew to as many as 42 points, and they wound up surrendering the most points they’ve given up in regulation this season.
“Just not a lot of attention to detail, simple as that,” Jalen Brunson said. “They kicked our [butt] from start to finish. You can’t explain it. I’m a loss for words, really.”
Brunson (26 points) and Karl-Anthony Towns (23) did their part offensively, but no one presented even a marginal obstacle defensively. Make any excuse you want, but there are none that explain being outhustled with such regularity. The Cavs (46-10) beat them down the floor on nearly every possession when it still was a hint of a contest.
“Right from the start,” Thibodeau said. “I thought we had the first couple minutes where we were up I think five and then missed a couple layups, and then if you jog back, there’s going to be a problem. Then we got hit quick and didn’t protect the basket and they got a lot of confidence from that and it just snowballed from there.”
Outside the Knicks’ organization, it was understandable that fans — and yes, media — pointed to this game at Rocket Arena as a measuring stick for the Knicks, a chance to pit themselves against the best team in the conference. Now they have less than 48 hours to steady themselves to take the floor at TD Garden against the Celtics, who have beaten the Knicks by a combined 50 points in two games and led by 35 in each.
For the Cavaliers, it certainly was a chance to prove themselves — not just against one of the better teams in the NBA but against the team that they still see as the one that embarrassed them in the postseason two years ago, outmuscling them and demonstrating that they had a ways to go before becoming the contender they are now.
“They remember,” Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson said. “Obviously when you lose like that, the rhetoric was they were more physical, they beat us up physically, they were more competitive. As a competitor, you remember those losses.
“It’s a credit to the Knicks. That’s who they are. Our guys have a little chip on their shoulder and a little ‘how can we get over the hump in terms of competing with this team and beating this team?’ It’s a healthy thing. It’s not like oh, man, we hate this team. They kicked our tail and we want to prove that we’re better.”
But the Knicks again found themselves missing pieces. There was little clarity about why Hart suddenly has been sidelined by a knee problem after a week off for the All-Star break. Mitchell Robinson still has not made his season debut. And the Knicks traveled to Cleveland for the second night of a back-to-back after an overtime win over Chicago in which four players logged more than 40 minutes.
So what exactly would this game mean? And the same question could be posed for Sunday afternoon’s game in Boston.
Perhaps it could be attributed to the time off, but OG Anunoby (who returned from a right foot sprain and scored five points) looked a step slow — as did most of the Knicks’ roster — all night. On one play with 10:01 left in the third quarter, he lost the ball to Donovan Mitchell (27 points) on a fast break, and as he slipped to the floor, he grabbed at the right foot, but he stayed in the game.
This one was over in the first quarter as Cleveland built a 41-29 lead, shooting 17-for-23 from the floor. The Knicks surrendered a season-worst 77 points in the first half and were down by 27.
“I think for teams that are high-volume three-point shooting, there’s going to be variances where the score can go quick,” Thibodeau said. “But you can also get back quick. You just can’t give in. And that’s the biggest thing. You can’t let anything break you. You got to have the mental toughness to get through things. And so there’s got to be a lot more resolve — particularly on the road against a team that is this good.”
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Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
