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Tim Bontemps
Boston – The New York Knicks entered this weekend in the hope of demonstrating that they had advanced in the game with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics, the crop cream at the east conference this season.
On the other hand, after a 37-point bottle at the hands of the Cavaliers in Cleveland on Friday, followed by a 118-105 defeat against the Celtics here in TD Garden on Sunday afternoon, a game that Boston led by 27 and had A total control for the vast majority of the action: New York admitted that it has a long way to go to catch its rivals after falling to 0-5 against Boston and Cleveland this season.
“Where I said from the beginning of the season: we are a job in progress,” said Karl-Anthony Towns about where he believes that Knicks are compared to their elite competition in the east. “We are going to be a work in progress throughout the year until the day we enter the postseason.
“Each NBA team will tell you the same. We are all a job in progress to the postseason, when you put all the chips and letters and see what the season taught you.”
It is good for the Knicks (37-20) that still have another 25 games to travel, because what this showed against Boston (41-16) is that there is still a gap the size of a large cannon between New York and its rival historical. The Celtics have won the three clashes with the Knicks for 63 combined points and have spent most of this game threatening to win with another margin of more than 20 points after jumping to an advantage of 38-19 after the first quarter.
“Because we have good defenders,” said Kristaps Porzingis, who ended with 15 points, 7 rebounds and 3 blocked shots, in what has allowed Boston to dominate his confrontation with New York this season. “We make it difficult in them. Obviously they have really talented offensive players, but our versatility and the boys we have in the team can really hinder them.
“It is obviously a dangerous team anyway, but we respect them and go out in the right way in the first and establish the tone for the game.”
The Celtics established the pattern with that first quarter, and the Knicks, once again, were staggering against an elite team. With more than two thirds of the season in the books, the numbers in all areas are more than worrying.
New York has 26-6 against equipment with lost records and 11-14 against teams with winning records. The Knicks now have the 20th position in general in the defensive rating, a shocking number for a team trained by Tom Thibodeau. Against the 10 crimes Top 10 this season, the number is even worse: immerse up to 29th in the NBA, ahead of the Toronto Raptors, according to ESPN’s investigation.
“It is probably a combination of things,” Thibodeau said about New York’s struggles defensively against elite teams. “One is the elite, and I think that the shooting equipment of volume 3, you can do a good job, but only take two or three minutes of not doing well and can run with you. So it is something we continue working on and That is the league test.
What was clear in the first three games this season against Boston, although this was the first time Porzingis played against his former team this year, is a difficult confrontation for cities, in particular, to drive. New York has executed more fall coverage against Boston, 48% of the time against ball screens, according to ESPN’s investigation, than any league team.
And, through these possessions, the Celtics have averaged 1.34 points per direct selection, by ESPN research, their best rate against any team that plays coverage fallen against them this season.
While the cities game center, as expected, has played the New York offensive, the Knicks are more than nine points for every 100 possessions better offensively with the cities on the floor than at the bank, the other end, the other end, Against all opponents, it has been a concern.
Returning to those games against the 10 crimes among the 10 best, Towns has allowed opponents in those games to shoot 63% from the field, classifying 346º of 346 players to play at least 50 shots against these teams, according to ESPN’s investigation .
In Layups and overturned in those games, Towns is allowing 70% of shots, and opponents are shooting 60% in general in Layups and overturned against him, which is the worst brand of any player to challenge at least 300 of them.
While Towns finally launched in the second half, ending with 24 points and 18 rebounds in 41 minutes while playing an important role in New York cutting the lead, Boston gave him and the rest of the Knicks defense a Munch of problems at all times the game.
“Only mistakes we made that we cannot commit,” Towns said about the defensive problems of New York. “We have to clean it.”
Towns also briefly left the game in the last quarter after brewing after an attempt to overthrow. He returned to the locker room after leaving the game during a resulting waiting time, only to eventually return during the last minutes.
When asked about it, Towns said: “We will see how the next two days go. Time will say it.
“It’s a long season. It has spikes and valleys. It’s what it is.”
The same could be said of these two games. Instead of a statement of intention for the hopes of the Knicks to break a 52 -year -old championship drought and a drought from the 26 -year -old NBA finals, losses for cavaliers and Celtics, which makes New York 0-7 This season against them and Oklahoma City Thunder: Instead, he made a very different type of statement about where the Knicks feel at this time in comparison With its championship rivals. And while the Knicks did everything possible to point out an impressive race of the third quarter of 23-5 as a tangible sign of improvement, which could only be taken so far.
“You have to get something positive out of something,” said Jalen Brunson. “I think the positive thing about this game is that third quarter and how we play. But I mean, I can continue to say all this, but we have to leave and do it.
“That’s all.”
