The Portland Trail Blazers got off to another slow start Friday night in New York, and it never quite picked up as they lost their fourth straight game 127-97 to the Knicks.
The Blazers (23-26) made just four of their first 16 shots to fall into an early hole. The Knicks led by 15 points after the first quarter and opened the second quarter on a 9-0 run to stretch the lead to 24.
The Knicks cooled off as the second quarter progressed, allowing the Blazers to cut the deficit to 10 points at halftime. But New York regained control in the third quarter, and Portland was never able to cut the deficit to single digits.
The red-hot Knicks improved to 30-18 with the win. They have now won five straight games, with four of those wins coming by 16 points or more.
Jalen Brunson scored 26 points to lead the Knicks. OG Anunoby chipped in 24, Josh Hart had 20, and Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 14 points and 20 rebounds. Shaedon Sharpe paced the Blazers with 26 points.
Here are some instant reactions to tonight’s game.
Player of Note
Sharpe scored in a variety of ways, leading the team with the aforementioned 26 points.
His second quarter flurry, including three three-pointers, sparked the Blazers best run of the game. In the quarter, they trimmed the New York lead from 24 all the way down to eight.
Sharpe continued to produce even as the Knicks pulled away in the second half. He finished 10-16 shooting overall and made 4-8 three-pointers.
In December and January, a span of 29 games, Sharpe is now shooting 40.1% from behind the arc on more than six attempts per game.
Stat of the Night
The Blazers made just one of their first ten shots and four of their first 16. By the time they started to find some offensive rhythm, they were already down 24 points early in the second quarter.
It isn’t uncommon for NBA teams to overcome large deficits, but the Blazers are starting to make a habit of slow starts and large early deficits that are often too much to overcome.
What We Noticed
Big Rob. Enjoy watching Robert Williams III play? When healthy, he is tremendously impactful. He rarely puts up big scoring numbers, and had just 4 points against the Knicks, but he makes his presence felt in so many ways.
Donovan Clingan rightly gets a lot of praise for his work on the offensive glass, but Williams has a strong case as the team’s best defensive rebounder. He grabbed 12 boards against the Knicks to go along with 3 blocks and two steals.
And those were just the plays that show up in the box score: he gets in passing lanes, deters opponents from challenging him at the rim, and makes good decisions with the ball.
Williams’ contract expires at the end of the season, and his name continues to surface in trade rumors. How many more times will Timelord suit up for the Blazers?
Avdija in the 4th Quarter. How long should Avdija be out on the floor in the fourth quarter when the Blazers are down by 25 points? Sure, teams can come back from big deficits in the modern NBA, but Avdija clearly isn’t fully healthy.
He finished the game with 11 points on 4-14 shooting. He made only one of his six three-point attempts and had four turnovers. Despite not being as effective as usual, he played the first five minutes of the fourth quarter even with the game seemingly out of reach.
The Blazers return home to face the Cleveland Cavaliers at 6pm Pacific on Sunday.