Knicks Playoffs: 3 Takeaways from Game 1 loss to Hawks
The Knicks learned a lot from their brutal loss to the Hawks
Well, that sucked. But did you really expect the Knicks to make it easy on us? They dropped their first playoff game in eight years, 107–105, to the Hawks. This was a game that either team could have won. There were seven ties and ten lead changes.
Unfortunately, the Knicks didn’t have the best player on the floor on Sunday. Trae Young scored 32 points and dished out ten assists (it pained me to type that), including the game-winner with 0.9 seconds left.
The Knicks dug themselves a large hole after one by missing 14 of their first 17 shots. As a fan, you had to feel pretty good that they were only down eight after one quarter.
RJ Barrett’s poster dunk on Bogdan Bogdanovic to tie the game midway through the third quarter felt like a momentum shifting play. New York stretched their led all the way to seven, but just when it looked like they may pull away, Atlanta inserted veteran scorer Lou Williams into the game.
Lou scored two quick buckets and suddenly New York had only a two point lead entering the fourth quarter. Williams scored six more points in the fourth quarter.
With Randle and Barrett struggling, it was the bench that carried the Knicks in this one. They outscored the Hawks bench, 64–31. Alec Burks was incredible, scoring 18 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter. Derrick Rose continued his brilliance with 17 points and 5 assists in a team-leading 38 minutes.
To their credit, New York never quit. They were in it right until the end. But it’s hard to win when your two leading scorers both put in brutal shooting performances.
If the ball bounces another way (literally, I mean if RJ Barrett grabs that loose ball instead of Bogdanovic, this is a completely different post) then we’re up 1–0 and no one’s talking about Trae Young like he’s fucking Batman.
Glass half full: I forgot what it feels like to care about the NBA Playoffs. It’s pretty great to care so much about a playoff loss instead of losing out on the drat pick I wanted. These are three of my takeaways from the loss.
1. Julius Randle & RJ Barrett Will Be Better
We finally saw a human side of Julius Randle. Even LeBron James had bad games in the playoffs. When Randle and Barrett combine to shoot 12–38 and score a combined 29 points, the Knicks aren’t going to win a lot of games.
Barrett and Randle were both making their playoff debuts and both guys were clearly pressing. RJ is just a kid so a few bad games in the postseason is understandable for him. And anyone who gets pissed off at Julius Randle for anything should be the first person rightfully banned from MSG.
Randle kicked the shit out of the Hawks this season, and we expected more of the same in game one. There’s no reason to be worried about Randle, though. He didn’t have just one great game against the Hawks. He had two 40 point games and a near triple-double (28 points, 17 rebounds, 9 assists).
Randle took some head-scratching shots in game one, but he also missed many shots he usually makes. Randle admitted after the game that he knew he needed to better. That’s precisely what you want to hear from your star player. Expect him to bounce back big time in game two.
2. Trae Young is going to get calls
So much of this series will depend on how often Trae Young gets to the free throw line. Things looked to be going the Knicks way. He didn’t shoot a single free throw in the first three quarters.
The refs were letting them play, right up until the last 6 minutes, 48 seconds remaining. That’s when Young entered the game in the fourth quarter. He immediately went to the line for two shots and went there for seven more, finishing 9–9 on the night.
A controversial call against RJ Barrett with less than 30 seconds helped Atlanta take the lead down the stretch. Young sealed the deal with the game-winner, but his free throws made a difference. Oh yeah, in case you were wondering, the Knicks shot four free throws as a team in the last 6:48 of the game.
Also, maybe I just never followed Trae that closely but what a dick. I’m glad he noticed the “Fuck Trae Young!” chants because they’ll be back even louder during game two.
The silencing the crowd bit was straight up bizarre, and the media reaction like the Hawks just went to the Finals was even weirder. He hit a game-winner around a cold third-stringer in game one of a playoff series. It was game one.
Young seems happy to play the villain in this series, and good for him. He’s going to get booed out of the building on Wednesday.
3. The Knicks Are Going To Be Fine
This series was never going to be easy. The Knicks and Hawks literally finished the season with the exact same record. Sure, the Knicks went 3–0 against the Hawks during the regular season, but Atlanta is a different squad from those first two beatings.
But I trust Thibs. I’m not gonna pretend that I’m some Xs and Os genius who understands what’s going through the coach’s head right now. But I trust that he’s going to think of something to make Trae Young cry by the first quarter is over.
We still play game two at the Garden. In a must win situation, the crowd may actually be even louder on Wednesday.
