The week was going great. New York won their first three games of the week, and they had the return of Mitchell Robinson. It was all going so great, then last night happened. Last night was supposed to be historic. Jalen Brunson played some of the best basketball I have ever seen. 61 points on TWELVE (12) free throw attempts is some wild stuff. But the referees decided it was not our game to win, and San Antonio came out with the W. What sucks was it was such an entertaining game. It could be one of the best games of the season, but sadly, the Knicks we're on the losing end of it. Wemby had one of his best career games against New York, while Brunson did as well. It was a battle between two differently built players—Brunson, with his small stature, going against the freak of human nature in Wemby. It was a great game, and honestly, as annoying as the free throw difference was, it's whatever. What pissed me off was at the final minute of overtime. I will never forgive the referee who called that jump ball violation with a minute left. One of the biggest bullshit calls I've ever seen. If anything, Wemby jumped early, too, but the game was not in our favor.
It sucks, but let's just look past the negatives. I know Brunson said the 61-point game didn't matter because it was a loss, but we have to give Brunson the praise. He got all but 10 points off free throws, and that alone needs to be praised. Also, Donte broke the Knicks single-season three-point record with nine games to go. I love seeing someone I enjoy as a Knicks break the record because in no world should Evan Fournier be the record holder.
But the best news of the week was the return of Mitchell Robinson. The news came out of nowhere that he was returning Wednesday night, and man, am I excited he's back. Now, the Knicks' defense gets tremendously better as Robinson will play the bench for the foreseeable future. I'm a little concerned because Mitch looks real slow and unhealthy. For those who know wrestling, this reference is for you; Mitchell Robinson reminds me a lot of how CM Punk looked in 2014. Just has an unhealthy look. I'm always a little nervous with Robinson, but I know I must be patient. He didn't play basketball for 50+ games, so I'll be nice. But man, was he slow.
Also, another shoutout to Deuce McBride. He continues to play at a crazy level.
Weekly Grades:
Knicks: A-
Jalen Brunson: A+
Isaiah Hartenstein: A-
Donte DiVincenzo: A
Josh Hart: A
Precious Achiuwa: B+
Deuce McBride: A
Mitchell Robinson: B
Bojan Bogdanovic: C
Alec Burks: injured
Now, let's see what the Knicks have up next for the coming week.
The Knicks are now in the toughest stretch of the season. This will be a difficult week for New York as the Knicks play Sunday night to cap off the month against the Thunder. The Thunder won in their only game against one another earlier in the season. This is a different Knicks team than they saw, but it could be a troubling game for them because the Knicks are still without Randle and OG. Unless the Knicks surprise the world again with a positive injury update, I can't see the Knicks winning this one, but hopefully, I am wrong. After that, New York heads down to Miami for a Tuesday night game. The Knicks are 2-0 against Miami this season, but I need them to embarrass the Heat. The last time they played, Randle got injured by someone on the Heat. This needs to be a blowout win for retribution. The Knicks then head back home to play the Kings on Thursday night on TNT. The Knicks were able to beat Sacramento last time they played injured so I don't see why this game shouldn't be any different. Plus, they should have Mitchell Robinson this time. Finally, the Knicks end the week in Chicago to play a back-to-back. It's their easiest game of the week. It just sucks that it has to come off a traveling back-to-back. The Knicks need to get as many wins as possible and attempt to get the third or second seed in the east. They have nine games to go, and every game matters more and more.
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