The Knicks are starting to look like themselves again, like a team that could make the playoffs. Getting OG Anunoby back strengthened the defense.
Another part of this is Jalen Brunson finding his rhythm. He dropped 45 at Portland on Thursday and followed that up Saturday with an impressive 42 in a quality win at Sacramento.
40 PIECES BACK TO BACK ????????
After 45 on Thursday, Jalen Brunson drops 42, including big buckets down the stretch, as the Knicks get Road W in Sacramento.
42 points | 5 p.m. 3 p.m. | 4STL pic.twitter.com/dq5aYhB5St
-NBA (@NBA) March 17, 2024
The craziest game of that evening was the dagger at the end. The Knicks were up three late and had Brunson alone with the ball up top. He noticed his defender, Keon Ellis, had his head swiveling looking for the pick that was coming, so Brunson called for a fake pick from his left and when Ellis looked, Brunson went right and blasted Ellis – which had a classic reaction. Brunson got the bucket.
The Knicks won 98-91. Donte DiVincenzo added 15 points for New York. Domantas Sabonis continued his strong offensive play with 21 points and 14 rebounds. De’Aaron Fox added 18.
The Knicks appear to be headed for a 4/5 first-round playoff showdown with Orlando, but nothing is set in stone. At 40-27, New York is the No. 4 seed, two games behind Cleveland in third (with 15 games remaining, the Knicks will need a lot of wins and a little help to climb a place). The Knicks are one game ahead of No. 5 seed Orlando, but 2.5 ahead of the No. 6 seed Pacers – the Knicks are unlikely to fall further than fifth place .
