Just minutes into last night’s game, Jalen Brunson went crashing down with a right ankle injury.
The Knicks’ hopes of beating the Kings
went down with him. Sacramento, sitting at a lowly 10-30, had their way with New York the rest of the way. Their first-quarter double digit lead remained that large for just about the remainder of the game. KAT, Anunoby, and Bridges all couldn’t find the stroke offensively, and while the bench didn’t play poorly, they were unable to make the game competitive.
Yes, Brunson is day-to-day, and hopefully the injury isn’t the most severe. Yes, he still hasn’t even been ruled out for tonight (officially). And while he’s one of the best players in the league, the team’s effort was putrid last night without him playing. Championships aren’t built this way.
With another game of a back to back tonight against Golden State, the question remains; can the Knicks keep games close without the captain leading the way?
So far this year, the Knicks are 1-2 without JB taking the floor. The squad split a home-and-home with Miami in mid-November with Brunson sidelined, and more recently lost by double digits on the road against Minnesota.
A telling stat? KAT is averaging 19.9 points per game when Brunson plays. When Brunson doesn’t? He averages 33.7.
It’s a small sample size, but the Knicks live and die by Towns when Brunson isn’t on the floor. After some subpar play and disappointing effort the last few games, this may be the perfect opportunity for him to get back into the flow of things.
Meanwhile, as a team, the Knicks are just 9-11 away from the Garden this year. The team is in dire need of a win on the road. Things are trending in the wrong direction.
Naturally, Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, and Mikal Bridges should all expect the ball in their hands more if Brunson doesn’t play. This also opens up the door for Kolek to play his way solidly back into the rotation, after he just recorded his first DNP since November the other night against Portland.
It’ll be all about energy tonight if the Knicks want to keep things close, with or without Brunson. The Warriors will be more than a worthy test to assess where the Knicks stand as their road trip comes to an end.
