It's been five years since their upset playoff series loss but it appears the New York Knicks still can't find a way to figure out Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks.
New York was eliminated and stunned by the upstart Hawks in the quarterfinal round of the NBA Cup in a 108-100 loss Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden.
The Knickerbockers got off to a hot start offensively thanks to the strong shooting of Mikal Bridges and ball movement from Jalen Brunson. The Knicks led by double digits in the first quarter but ended it with just a six-point advantage.
In typical Hawks fashion, though, they simply wouldn't go away quietly.
The Knicks had built up a seven-point halftime lead but that was even quickly removed by a 21-4 run by Atlanta not only erased their lead but put the Hawks in front late in the third quarter. In total, Atlanta outscored the Knicks 34-18 in the entire third period to take a nine-point lead going into the fourth.
Now on their heels, the Knicks struggled to maintain any sort of consistency on either side of the court. New York shot just 43% from the field and 26% from downtown. Brunson arguably struggled the most on Wednesday by going 5-15 while Karl-Anthony Towns recorded a 19-19 game.
It didn't help the team couldn't keep Atlanta off the boards.
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The Hawks recorded 22 offensive rebounds throughout the entire night while shooting just 41% from the field. Young led the way with 22 points but was aided by Jalen Johnson who recorded 21 points on 17 rebounds.
DeAndre Hunter also killed the Knicks off the bench with a game-high 24 points on 5-6 shooting from beyond the arc.
It's the second straight year that the Knicks were bounced in the first round of the NBA Cup Knockout stage. Last season they lost to the Milwaukee Bucks.
Freshly eliminated from the NBA Cup, New York will be back on the court next Thursday on the road against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
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This story was originally published December 11, 2024, 8:31 PM.