Blazers Stumble, Bumble, and Eventually Crumble in Loss to Knicks

SB Nation

Two streaks stayed alive in New York tonight as the Portland Trail Blazers fell to the Knicks 127-97. It was the fifth consecutive win for the home team and the fourth straight loss for the visitors. Shaedon

Sharpe did a lot of the heavy lifting for the Blazers with 26 points, but it wasn’t even close to enough to counter 26 from Jalen Brunson, 24 from OG Anunoby and 20 from Josh Hart. Following are a few Hawaiian-eyed observations from the game.

Another Slow Start

The Blazers only made one of their first ten shots tonight, but they were still in the game at the first timeout with 5:39 left in the opening quarter at 10-12. Donovan Clingan rebounded three of those misses to help his team stay close. By the end of the quarter, though, the Knicks were up 37-22. Brunson ran roughshod with 13 points. He took a break to open the second but his team did not, expanding the lead to 46-22 before the Blazers called time at the 9:51 mark.

The good news? Portland clawed their way back into the game by the end of the quarter, thanks to 17 first-half points from Shaedon Sharpe, 11 from Jerami Grant and an eye-opening quinella from Sidy Cissoko. Brunson finished the half with 19 to balance it out.

Time for Time Lord

Robert Williams III played 20 minutes and ended up the only Blazer with a positive plus-minus today (+1, but still). He got there by combining 2 for 2 shooting from the floor with 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks and 2 steals. It wasn’t enough on a cold, cold New York night, but it was something.

Hand to Hand Combat

Both Donovan and Deni Avdija left the court in the second quarter grimacing with one hand holding the other. Both came back to start the third, but to little effect. Keep an eye on the injury report going forward (if you haven’t been already).

What’s Up With Jrue and Deni?

Jrue Holiday and Avdija would probably be happy to forget it\\this one. They look like two very good players who are struggling to return to form after injuries. Their combined stats were 16 points on 6 for 21 shooting from the field, 2 for 9 from three, 7 rebounds, 7 assists and 8 turnovers. Do the Blazers have a chance of shaking their losing streak with that level of contribution from this duo? Nope. Is this level likely to continue much longer? Also nope.

Turnover Troubles

Acting Head Coach Tiago Splitter is not a happy camper. No surprise there. In his comments after the game, he pointed directly at the Blazers committing 20 turnovers, including several from what he described as his team’s “top dogs.” In summary, the Blazers need to play with “more force, more purpose, more focus.” Pretty hard to argue with any of that, Coach.