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2022-23 Game Thread: Knicks vs. Hornets – Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out?

Now look, is this a total trap game? Of course. Is Jalen Brunson not playing? No, he is not. Does that add to the trap game factor? Of course.

On the other hand, the Hornets are terrible, they’re playing without their best player, and Svi actually almost played ten minutes in the last game.

I won’t say that the Knicks won’t fall into this trap but, well…come on…

How’s the 49 win prediction looking? At the moment, my 49 wins looks low! Wow!

Let’s go, Knicks!

178 replies on “2022-23 Game Thread: Knicks vs. Hornets – Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out?”

Let’s make it to 10, to show the Bucks who they’ll be dealing with to get out of the east! 😛 Gooooo Knicks! 🏀

Obi is gonna have to bring some energy to this game, Knicks look beyond flat right now.

Only five of us watching the game, apparently, which is about what it’s been worth so far. We’re very, very lucky this is Charlotte.

Pepper! Make that six…

Fast break and Obi instead of going to the rim floats out to the 3pt line and bricks…

Toppin is a wet noodle…3 on 2 break…he runs to the freaking corner…he needs to grow a pair…

Bba got it too

Okay, that was pretty, and kudos to Barrett so far. Solid game.

He’s passing!!

I admit I’m only checking in here or there with Captain America on… For Hayley Atwell

They just shouldn’t bother bringing the starters back in. Give this unit 36 minutes…

2nd unit plus RJ providing a spark offensively but they’re defending like shit.

My son has an interesting theory about RJ – that he plays better when Brunson is out because he doesn’t force things as much knowing he’ll have the ball in his hands a lot.

I kind of buy it.

Fast break and Obi instead of going to the rim floats out to the 3pt line and bricks…

Only reading the thread and this makes me sad.

Man, looks like RJ might be worth the number 3 pick (mostly by default)

“Grimes is gonna be Mikal in a few years”

At this rate Mikal is going to be Kawhi in a few years. 😉

So far we’re avoiding the trap

Not to jinx it, but it will take a Herculean effort to lose this game.

I show up late to a game and nobody mentions that Deuce is 2-2?!!

I like that RJ Brunson theory.

Man, the top of the game thread is a sharp contrast with the last three minutes of the game. Really heated up.

Also, Mark Williams definitely activates a lot of my big man erogenous zones

Also, search for D3uc3 above

“Did Obi play”

Has Obi had any really good games since he came from injury?

Maybe 1 or 2 decent ones I can remember.

Thibs has to run a few plays for him. He’s not a 3 point shooter and floor spacer. You have to find him on cuts or on leak outs. Draw up something that gets him open going to the rim.

Washington playing like they really want to hang on to that draft pick

Watching the shootaround explains why I love Obi to death and maybe he needs a tad more focus. While IQ works on his floater over and over, Obi finds two tiny kids and plays around with having them guard him in the corner, hoisting joke shots.

I mean, what a loveable idiot.

Hopefully the Knicks put the hammer down in the third and get guys some rest before the road trip. And get Obi a nice full fourth quarter run.

My God the defense this quarter is gonna make me pull whatever hair I have left out.

Really hate Randle taking our technical FT’s. That’s two this game that clearly should have been shot by Quickley.

It’s not like Thibs to concede any edges, no matter how small.

Looks like our D is in its “allow consecutive offensive rebounds until the opponent hits a three” phase. Cue a Hornets comeback.

Randle might be playing the worst game of the season especially defensively, he’s given absolutely 0 effort on that end.

Tuned in to catch the guys singing RJ’s praises. Seems deserved tonight.

Then some fugly basketball as the lead went from ten to three. C’mon, guys.

It’s a combination of CHA getting every bounce and totally outworking us.

Daniel Gafford with the put back as time expires to save one for our WAS pick

Even that Deuce layup felt a little trebuchetish but if they go in great.

Josh Hart in transition is a fucking freight train. It’s unbelievable.

Can’t believe we flipped the momentum like that.

Owen, the momentum can flip back just as quickly. Kindly apply your reverse jinx powers forthwith!

One thing you can say for Dennis Smith Jr, he’s always the dumbest player on the court

Mark Williams is going to have a long career

Randle doesn’t seem to have his customary energy tonight. And RJ has to be closing in on the league lead for blocked shots.

Have to say I did not have “couldn’t keep Gordon Hayward off the offensive boards” on my bingo card for tonight.

Charlotte is so bad it doesn’t feel real that we’re only up 3. If they beat us by 10 it’ll still feel like we won, that’s how bad they are.

Randle’s legs are rubbery, you could tell on that fade that he had no lift…

Wally must be hitting the schnapps hard..he called Hayward a good defender…

Gonna be a short lived stint at the top of the CBS Sports Power Poll after this turd.

I bet RJ gets blocked by the rim 3 times a practice during layup lines

This game is single handedly wiping away all the good feelings from the winning streak.

Forget the 4th seed which might be a good thing considering how bad the Knicks are at home.

I’m just going to tell myself that the Celtics lost 3 in a row to the Magic, so good teams are bound to lose trap games to vastly inferior opponents every now and then.

it really was a waste of 9 games… if we can lose this one… inexcusable…

I know Thibs can’t do it, but he really should have pulled Randle from this game

Tired legs all around. When Randle has games like this you wish Obi could show something special. Not there tonight.

Bruno… i am glass half empty… i just think we caught the celtics on a full out downswing … i am a sad guy right now …

We could get blown out by Houston and Wally would tell us how well Randle played

>>>I know Thibs can’t do it, but he really should have pulled Randle from this game

I was thinking the same thing

This is what we get for believing a Knicks team was actually good…..

Clearly tired legs from the Knicks. Shouldn’t have lost this game but also Thibs should’ve rode the bench harder imo

On to the next one!

Let’s not over react. They just had an off night. I think it’s forgivable after 9 wins in a row.

Trap game is bullshit once they lead by 16 at halftime. If they would’ve been down big then had to comeback but lose in the end you can use it as an excuse but when your up 16 at halftime especially at home there are no excuses whatsoever for losing that game.

Sometimes the 3s don’t drop. This was the kind of game where Brunson would have helped a lot. There would have been less pressure on Randle and he would have made a few momentum killing shots when CHA was rallying. No big deal. Rest up, get ready for the tough games ahead, and keep rolling.

This is still a good team. Total trap game after a bunch of hard wins. You wish the Knicks could lose with dignity instead of jawing at the refs and risking technicals.

Also, if Julius doesn’t have it, sit him. After the double overtime win, Thibs should have rolled the dice with the second unit for most of the 2nd half. Maybe you lose, but at least the guys get rested and re-focus for the final push.

NO INJURIES. LET’S GET BRUNSON BACK. We are going deeeeeeep into the playoffs this year.

Maybe this is just the fan PTSD talking but I feel a losing streak coming on in my bones. I’d be surprised if we didn’t lose the next four on this trip against SAC, LAC, LAL, and POR.

IIRC our prior 8-game winning streak was also followed by an immediate 5-game slide. I need a drink.

Something Charlotte did that consistently gives us trouble is PG pressure and pressing in general. I think teams are going to throw that at us in the playoffs constantly, so I hope Thibs is game planning for it.

Not to mention after the 4 game road trip the Knicks return home to play Denver…..

They were just tired, guys. There’s a reason even great teams struggle to win more than a few games in a row. It’s exhausting.

Good news is Brunson is getting a rest, they understand they aren’t invincible, and Thibs surely saw how little Randle had in the tank. He’s terrible at in-game adjustments, but has otherwise made good decisions, and I bet he starts spelling Randle more.

Oh God I just realized tomorrow we’re gonna have to deal with a bunch of posts from E

Blow it up. Tank. Now. GET OUT OF PURGATORY BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY NOW NOW NOW

That loss meant nothing. Seriously, all sorts of teams lose all sorts of games. This didn’t mean anything.

By Post Author

They were just tired, guys. There’s a reason even great teams struggle to win more than a few games in a row. It’s exhausting.

How much more tired could they be? They had a day off in between this and a game with 10 extra minutes, and only had to travel from Boston to NY. They’ll have the same amount of time off between games for the entire road trip coming up. Will they be tired the whole way then?

any one else feeling like the shine has worn off of memphis this season…actually rooting a bit here for the lakers…

actually, no not really, just not sure where the remote is right now to turn the channel…

That sucked, but does anyone think we’d lose that game if Brunson plays?

It’s the NBA, 82 games and good teams lose to shit teams all the time.

It’s not just physically tired….it’s the ability to get more up for the game than the opponent. Other than the super-teams, it’s a tall order muster up the same level of intensity that it took to beat Miami and Boston in a game against a lesser opponent. And CHA has 3 players that are very solid NBA starters when they have it going in Rozier, Oubre and Hayward.

This loss means nothing but that we were mentally and physically subpar after two highly emotional wins, one of which was in double-overtime.

One of the ironies of the load management theory is that you can make a strong argument that it gives you a better chance of winning the “schedule loss” (like tonight).

Randle > Obi but is Exhausted Randle > Fresh Obi? It’s close enough, I think, to give Randle a rest at a crucial time before a big west coast trip.

Not worth harping on, though. Randle could just as easily have a monster game in Sacramento.

Now that the game has been over for 30 mins whatever just move on but again the tired excuse doesn’t fly when they had a 16 pt halftime lead at home against one of the worst teams in the NBA who had no reason whatsoever to try to win this game.

This was an inexcusable a loss and if they’re tired now WTF is gonna happen when they play 4 games in 6 days on the west coast starting Thursday, that’s the worrisome part.

“Alan says:
March 7, 2023 at 22:22
Blow it up. Tank. Now. GET OUT OF PURGATORY BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY NOW NOW NOW”

The best thing about this post is that I didn’t write it 😀

If there is a positive about tonight though is that I learned about Dua Lipa!

I think that Randle looked a bit tired, but yes, I don’t think that “tired” is a fair excuse. They just had a shitty loss. Whatever. It doesn’t mean anything in a vacuum.

By Post Author

In 1994 the Knicks went 14-0 in March but struggled a bit in April to blow the 1 seed to Atlanta but they still reached the NBA Finals so there’s always a silver lining!

“…when they had a 16 pt halftime lead at home against one of the worst teams in the NBA who had no reason whatsoever to try to win this game.”

Come on Al, a 16 point lead is nothing in this league. And the Hornets actually do have a reason to try to win. They are an NBA team with a hard-nosed coach and playing in the world’s most famous arena. I mean, are you suggesting that it takes away from the 9-game winning streak in some way? That would be pretty harsh.

I’m honestly appalled by some of the reactions. Are people fucking serious?

I’m with BC, good teams lose to bad ones almost every night in the NBA. After a physically and emotionally taxing road trip we were an obvious candidate tonight.

That said, this was one of those nights I wish Thibs was a little more flexible. I’m completely fine with Fournier being out of the rotation in general, but on a night everyone else looks exhausted, we don’t have Brunson, and we’re dreadful from 3, give him a look!

Side note: RJ looked pretty good via the eye test from the stands, but it’s sad that this is what passes for a good RJ game these days. Would be really nice if he could give us more when we’re short handed.

Side side note: I feel bad for Obi given that he’s found himself backing up an all-NBA player largely by accident, but last season he seized on these kinds of games and this year he hasn’t.

Dua Lipa… That’s a conversation I can get on board for. Lovely looking lady. Jack Harlow makes a song about her and starts dating her when she breaks up with her boyfriend. Talk about Kentucky scoring.

OK so I do know about the Jack Harlow song just didn’t realize it was about her! And Z-Man no it doesn’t take away from the winning streak but there is no acceptable excuse to lose that game if you’re a team fighting for playoff positioning like the Knicks are. None whatsoever.

OK so I do know about the Jack Harlow song just didn’t realize it was about her! And Z-Man no it doesn’t take away from the winning streak but there is no acceptable excuse to lose that game if you’re a team fighting for playoff positioning like the Knicks are. None whatsoever.

I think I see the disconnect. I think it’s totally fair to say, “They shouldn’t have lost this game” and that it was a bad loss. It was definitely a bad loss. It was a terrible loss. It’s just that it really doesn’t mean anything beyond it being a single bad loss. It was essentially an aberration. If they lose other games, then that has more meaning. This loss, in and of itself, though, doesn’t mean anything beyond “they had a shitty game.”

By Post Author

“That said, this was one of those nights I wish Thibs was a little more flexible.”

This is totally fair.

“…there is no acceptable excuse to lose that game if you’re a team fighting for playoff positioning like the Knicks are. None whatsoever.”

This is not.

My wife suggests the Knicks may have been intimidated by Dua Lipa sitting courtside and, so, you know, no levitating.

I hate load management and how it screws the fans who pay big $$ to see stars, but tonight would have been a perfect night to rest Randle.

I saw an ESPN analyst today who had a great Thibs take: “he ignores the check engine light”. This analyst also said the big minutes will catch up to the Knicks in the playoffs.

Whether he’s right or not, Randle is now 2nd in the league in minutes and tonight he obviously needed a break.

“It’s just that it really doesn’t mean anything beyond it being a single bad loss. It was essentially an aberration.”

If there’s anything I can count on is that the Knicks give all they have every fucking night. This was a last 3-minute loss, not a listless blowout.

I will also say that if it was the critical game some here are making it out to be, Brunson would have played. It was a calculated risk to rest him another game. We got one without him because IQ had the game of his life. We needed someone to step up tonight and no one (but RJ to an extent) really did.

I think TNFH is correct in saying that Thibs should have recognized that Randle and IQ just didn’t have the same mojo and maybe just let the kids like McBride and Sims battle it out with energy. The problem there is that Rozier, Oubre and Hayward are actually very good, and PJ and Williams aren’t bums either. When those guys get it going, you better hit 3’s and limit second shots. Seems like they got a lot of bounces and made a lot of shots. I doubt that the bench would have stopped them, but it was probably worth resting the starters for the upcoming road trip.

One fair “troubled” take is that if all three of Randle, IQ and Brunson don’t have it going, we are going to have a hard time beating anyone.

I’m really glad that LeBron is missing that Laker game!

By Post Author

You’re right Brian but when you immediately have a 4 games in 6 days west coast trip then return home to play Denver this loss is gonna look alot worse in 10 days if all of a sudden the Knicks are back to fighting for their life to stay out of the play in.

But I gotta mess with Z-Man who I have joked about his infatuation with the Raptors cause he just said the Hornets starting lineup has 3 very good players and 2 guys who aren’t bums yet they are somehow just 21-46 with the 4th worst point differential in the NBA 🙂

It wouldn’t have been a revolutionary move for Thibs to sit Randle and IQ more. Coaches do this all the time. You could see 5 minutes into the game that they had dead legs.

Does he really not get that guys who played 50 minutes and took every shot in an emotionally exhausting game 2 days ago might need a little rest?

I am also quite pleased that the Nets’ upcoming schedule is brutal. The Bucks, the Nuggets twice, the Kings, Timberwolves, the Cavaliers twice and the Heat. Their only “bad” opponent in this stretch is the Thunder, who don’t exactly suck.

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Mikal Bridges, though, holy shit, man. Durant is obviously a super-duper star. One of the greatest scorers in NBA history. You can easily build a contender around Durant. No doubt about it. But boy, Bridges and a bunch of picks is really looking like quite the return for Durant (and that’s not even taking Cam Johnson into consideration).

By Post Author

Yeah I noticed that plus the Heat schedule coming up isn’t a piece of cake either although they do play the Knicks twice more this month.

Actually watching Cuba vs Netherlands in the WBC opener before I knock out.

It really doesn’t make any sense. And Nurse is a fine coach. The whole thing boggles the mind. To be fair, though, they did go toe-to-toe with the Nuggets in their last loss, which is something.

By Post Author

***an emotionally exhausting game 2 days ago might need a little rest?***

Why would doing ten extra minutes of work require an extra 24 hours of recovery? It’s not a back-to-back. They had 48 hours. These are professional athletes, man.

After that 1st quarter brick contest, i fell asleep. Reading the game thread i see we managed to put up a lead but then we had less energy than them and got the inevitable L. It’s just one game, no big deal. Thibs should’ve done a lot more changes to let guys rest, but hey he’s much improved from the previous seasons and it’s a minor thing for now. I do worry we’ll grow tired to play the playoffs like in 2020-21, but at least Brunson was resting so there’s that.

But to not ruin our chances to avoid the play-in, we’ll have to go 2-2 at worst in the west road trip. If we go worse than that, then yeah we should worry and this game can come back to bite us.

“I think I see the disconnect. I think it’s totally fair to say, “They shouldn’t have lost this game” and that it was a bad loss. It was definitely a bad loss. It was a terrible loss. It’s just that it really doesn’t mean anything beyond it being a single bad loss. It was essentially an aberration. If they lose other games, then that has more meaning. This loss, in and of itself, though, doesn’t mean anything beyond “they had a shitty game.”

I think the problem on our side is that many of us were starting to believe that the team had turned a real corner and was becoming a juggernaut/behemoth. This was not a behemoth game, this was a listless loss to a lesser team. So we’re struggling with cognitive dissonance.

Some thoughts about the game thread, not so funny than previous threads of course. 😛

Don’t show Beavis and Butthead those CLT jerseys

WTF is CLT?? Should we start using some random letters to define NY? I propose NRK!! 😀

And RJ has to be closing in on the league lead for blocked shots.

I used to say this and then Milo would come with some stat denying my claim, so to prove i learn from him, here’s the list:
https://www.nba.com/stats/players/misc?dir=D&sort=BLKA
RJ is 9th, but the company is promising (Embiid, Zion, Ja, Giannis, Shai). 😉 Maybe if there’s a stat mixing BA (blocks against) and forays to the rim, RJ would be higher on the list, i don’t know. One thing is certain, the shots he has that end being blocked sometimes we can see it a few seconds before and that’s why we get mad at him. If we can see it, he should too and so he should look to pass. But he was better with that on the part that i was awake, trying to pass to Mitch.

Yeah I noticed that plus the Heat schedule coming up isn’t a piece of cake either although they do play the Knicks twice more this month.

Those games will be huge, we’ll have to at least split it to win the series against them, but going 2-0 would be the nail on the coffin and take off their chances to catch us in the standings.

And now i’m monitoring the Warriors road games, last night they played in OKC and got the L as usual. They’re now 27-7 at home and 7-25 on the road!? Is it only me that find this W/L distribution odd?

I despise Gordon Hayward, but he said this post-game:

“I think at this point in time in the season everyone is tired,” Hayward said. “You’re going through it and games are every other night and they obviously had some emotional wins, too. That’s another part of fatigue, not just the physical but the mental and the emotional. So for us to win tonight was big for our team.”

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