Without Jalen Brunson, the Knicks welcome the struggling Magic
On Saturday night, the New York Knicks got a taste of what it was like to live without guard Jalen Brunson. They were not pleased with what they saw, even in victory. In the Knicks’ Martin Luther King Jr. Day matinee against the Orlando Magic on Monday afternoon, Brunson might be back in the starting lineup. Following their road games on Saturday, when the Knicks defeated the depleted Memphis Grizzlies 106-94 and the Magic lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder 112-100, both teams were off.
The Knicks trailed the hosts 57-53 at the half, despite the Grizzlies missing most of their starting lineup—guard Ja Morant (shoulder) and center Steven Adams (knee) are out for the season, while leading scorer Desmond Bane (ankle) and center Jaren Jackson Jr. (knee) were sidelined on Saturday. Despite Brunson’s absence from the game due to a bruised calf, New York took control of the game, outscoring the Grizzlies 30 to 15 in the third quarter. This absence was felt even after the game. In his absence on Saturday, the Knicks committed a season-high 22 turnovers, compared to Brunson’s average of 25.8 points, 6.4 assists, and 2.3 turnovers per game.
Julius Randle, who finished with six turnovers despite recording a double-double with 24 points and 11 rebounds, said, “It was awful — I was terrible, I’m not going to lie.” “The game was just slow and generally untidy. However, we managed to secure the victory. That is the important thing.
After winning his 500th game in coaching, Tom Thibodeau of the Knicks expressed optimism that Brunson would be able to play on Monday. Before the Grizzlies game, Brunson worked out, but he was benched.
“He felt better,” Thibodeau reported. “We’ll see (Sunday), another day of treatments and stuff, and then see if he can go on Monday.” The Magic have lost three games in a row, and their current losing streak was extended by their defeat to the Thunder. Since December 15, Orlando has suffered three losing runs of at least three games. During that time, the team has gone 5-11 and is currently in eighth place in the Eastern Conference, two games behind the Knicks in sixth place as of Sunday. There is a playoff berth guarantee for the top six teams in each conference.
The Magic have lost seven of their last eleven games by 12 points or less. Orlando had a brief lead in the first quarter on Saturday, but with two minutes remaining, they had narrowed a 15-point deficit to six points. However, they would later commit three turnovers and go 0-for-3 from the field. Jalen Williams’ game-winning 7-1 run for the Thunder started with him covering his own miss with 1:44 left in the game. Magic coach Jamahl Mosley stated, “There was a turnover here, an offensive rebound there, when we had it down to six.” “We discuss not beating ourselves up, and in those situations, those were the things that mattered most. We struggled and struggled, but in those circumstances, you have to tend to the little things.”
In the 38 seasons that games have been played on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the Knicks are the only NBA team to have done so. Owing to the lockout by the owners, the 1998–1999 season didn’t start until February 5, 1999. Orlando is 7-11 on the holiday, while New York is 23-14.
