News & Blogs
Lakers-Spurs, Knicks-Raptors highlight rivalry-laden NBA Cup quarterfinals slate – The New York Times
Game Thread: Knicks vs. Bucks, Nov. 28, 2025 – Posting & Toasting
Knicks’ Josh Hart knew he had to step up against Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo with OG Anunoby sidelined – SNY
NBA Cup bracket: Knicks, Magic, Thunder, Spurs reach quarterfinals – CBS Sports
Knicks Notes: Josh Hart making case to stick in lineup, Mitchell Robinson and Tyler Kolek impressing off the bench – SNY
Knicks 118, Bucks 109: Winning with a lot of Hart – Posting & Toasting
Knicks vs Bucks – Recap & Reaction | POSTGAME SHOW | Knicks Film School – Knicks Film School
Pod Strickland Patreon Preview Episode 546: Hart Revival – The Strickland
Jalen Brunson COOKS Giannis & The Bucks for 37 PTS! – Knicks Fan TV
BUCKS at KNICKS | EMIRATES NBA CUP 🏆 | FULL GAME HIGHLIGHTS | November 28, 2025 – NBA
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71 replies on “Knicks Morning News (2025.11.29)”
My feelings about both last night’s game and our upcoming NBA Cup games are complicated. On the one hand, I want to see this team put together a sustained run of strong play, against strong competition, even without OG and with Mitch not playing very well at the moment. On the other hand, I don’t want the team to overtax itself with extra travel and games, and things didn’t go particularly well later in the season for the Lakers and Bucks after they won the first two Cups.
And I don’t care about the in-season tournament in general. But it would be nice for us to go kick the Raptors’ asses, and then do the same to whomever we’d play in Vegas.
Also, I dreamed last night that Yabu got into some kind of legal trouble — maybe gambling, maybe entirely unrelated to basketball — that was going to make him unavailable to play for the team for the rest of the year.
I’ve come up with the definitive method for viewing the NBA Cup, heavily weighting a small sample, of course…
Obviously winning the cup is a curse. The Lakers and Bucks both stumbled greatly after lifting it.
But losing in the cup final has been great. The Pacers were an upstart when they lost the first cup and went on make the ECF and Finals in subsequent years. And the Thunder won it all.
So let’s just make the final because it’s two regular season wins over EC playoff teams, and give no fucks about the actual final.
And while I don’t think it’s an actual curse, I do see a legitimate reason for two teams struggling after winning. Of course it could be random, but if you introduce any sense of accomplishment early in something that’s supposed to be a long grind, I can see that having unintended consequences on player’s psyche.
Think about your own work. What if you’re Alan, for instance, and 1/2 through writing a book your editor said it was great and announced to the press that you’d written a great book and you did a tout promoting it and everyone’s congratulating you for it. And then you have to finish it.
As a big fan of the Cup I plan to periodically post as to some of the benefits in no particular order of preference. So today..
Let’s win it for Landry. The guy makes 1.3million but could be waived, cutting his salary by about half. If we win (assuming he is still on the roster by Dec 16 which he will be) he gets an additional 500K.
“Of course it could be random, but if you introduce any sense of accomplishment early in something that’s supposed to be a long grind, I can see that having unintended consequences on player’s psyche.”
If we beat OKC in the final any unintended consequences are overwhelmed by the positive consequences.
I don’t want us to win the cup mainly because I think it would be somewhat embarrassing for us to raise a cup banner at MSG before we raise another championship or even conference championship banner.
What are the positive consequences of beating OKC in the final, though?
– we win the cup… but what does that mean?
– we raise a banner… to Swift’s point, is that something we’re going to be proud of?
– we have a fun night… this is real, but what’s the cost?
If my hypothesis is correct, and this fun night leads to some lackluster play in the subsequent weeks like it did for LA and Milwaukee, will the juice be worth the squeeze?
The cup final is on the 16th, btw. Our schedule in the next week:
12/19 Philadelphia
12/21 Miami
12/23 @Minnesota
12/25 Cleveland
12/27 @Atlanta
That would be a terrible time for an NBA Cup hangover.
I think the optimal outcome here is win the two regular season games, lose the meaningless final.
The Clippers are a complete mess, 5-14 and they’re actually healthy.
How’s it goink with the roster full of old vets approach?
And the Spurs are 13-5 despite missing Wemby the last 6 games.
and were still only the 4 seed
The Clippers are a real cautionary tale for Leon. They didn’t want to go over the 2nd apron so they talked themselves into things like “Bradley Beal can give us most of what Norm Powell did.”
Leon’s going to face similar choices this summer and may be tempted to let Mitch walk or trade Deuce instead of paying him. It’s a slippery slope when you start doing that. We should probably just go over the 2nd apron.
This is what I thought too when I crashed your thanksgiving dinner wearing a Dodger’s hat.
or a dodgers hat youre just happy because the pacers “improved” to 3-16 with a win over the 2-16 wizards
I will continue to feel that the NBA Emirates cup is a silly moneygrab with far more downside than upside. None of these games will mean anything to me other than a win or loss on the final regular season ledger. As it stands, we now have an extra road game vs. Toronto, and then an extra game against either the Magic or Heat. Since I hope we win every game that actually counts for something, if we actually get to the finals, it will be a glorified exhibition game against a WC team in the gambling capital of the world. If that happens, I would love to see both teams agree to call up all two-ways and play only their non-rotation players. Let them battle it out for the extra money.
Can’t wait for whatever this is to be behind us.
agree with all of dat even the standings dont make any sense we are first and the heat are second even though it is the same record and their point differential is better id rather be second than first and id rather be eliminated than second
magic shot 17 percent from 3 last night and beat the pistons who shot 39 percent from 3 its weird i dont see anything in the boxscore that easily points to why orlando won but here we are
sacto is using westbrook as an sf which is weird as hes never really played there before
Westbrook and Josh Hart have lots of similarities, so I can squint and see it.
I have an old man yelling at clouds rant: there are too many damn FTs in the NBA right now.
good call on westbrook vs hart z westbrook would have had a totally different nba career legacy if he hadnt been expected to have the ball and lead the break most of the time
and i still think that mark williams would have been/would be a decent get for us altho im not sure how
that’s right
I used to be kind of annoyed when folks would discredit Westbrook’s double-figure rebounds because he was “stealing” them from teammates. aIn actuality, he was just beating folks to the ball with superior anticipation, burst, and athleticism, same as Josh Hart…except prime Westbrook was an even better athlete.
Luka & Reeves combined average more FTAs a game than the Wizards, the Bucks or Boston
at times I’ll lament not having or recalling vivid dreams much at all anymore…been years actually…
maybe I’m not missing too much though 🤔
White privilege is real.
I know he’s not a long-term solution to anything and his number have been bad in Phoenix, but the Suns want to move Nick Richards, who currently makes 5 mil on the last year of his contract.
We could probably get him for our worst youngster and/or Shamet and cash, but tbh, Huk is probably just as good if he could get backup C minutes. But Nick is probably the only available center who makes that little and could be had without trading picks (just sayin).
I believe Knicks are the only team in the NBA that have advanced to the quarterfinals in every NBA Cup tournament.
I try not to pay attention to Doogie, but since he asked:
“The Pistons finished with more turnovers (24) than assists (22), allowed four offensive rebounds in final minute and missed seven free throws in a game decided by three points.”
So, if it is against the Magic, does it mean that we still have a chance to win the tiebreaker? All hail the NBA Cup !! 😀
ess-dog, I just tried multiple Knicks trades for Richards on the trade machine, including giving them all three of Dadiet, Kolek, and Hukporti. (Which I wouldn’t want to do.) None of them work because of the aprons.
I’m concerned about the Knick’s inability to consistently integrate KAT into the offense, something he foreshadowed pre-season when he said that he did not know his role in the offense.
Bo, I was fascinated and questioning using Hart as the high pick and roll there at the end of the game when Brunson was being swarmed — why not KAT? Hart worked, so I’m not going to give Brown demerits, but having a sweet-shooting giant pass target who can spray as well as Hart but also drop a bucket in seems like a no-brainer for that role..
Do you honestly think NBA players give a single fuck (beyond the 531K) about winning a bogus made up tournament and they are going to have some sort of let down from the high of winning the exhaulted NBA CUP?
Just like I can’t imagine them getting to bed (by themselves) early the night before the important NBA CUP finals in Las Vegas when they could be doing God knows what.
Fantasy world.
Maybe it works with Yabu’s salary after December 15.
id rather work harder on developing yabu then
Except the expolsiveness going to the rim and the ball handling/passing part . 🙂
As an aside, I am currently on a Ken Burns documentary kick. I watched both The American Revolution and Prohibition, which were both fantastic. I have moved on to Vietnam, which is so shattering that it is almost too much to endure.
There are clear parallels between all three of these periods in our history and our current political climate. I won’t get into the specifics of my thoughts and feelings, other than to encourage folks to take in these documentaries* and reflect on our history and what has led us to this time and place as a country.
*just to note that these documentaries are not perfect, and no substitute for rigorous academic study…but they capture enough to generate questions, more than answering them.
“id rather work harder on developing yabu then”
I’d rather Alan’s dream came true.
“Except the expolsiveness going to the rim and the ball handling/passing part . 🙂”
Russell Westbrook may be pound-for-pound the most “dynamic” player in NBA history. Shame that the efficiency was never really there.
A sentence that has never been once previously uttered in the history of the human race!
Donnie I asked ChatGPT to write the Black Friday Tv story you suggested and it largely sucked but this gem made me smile:
Then Donnie stepped forward, smugness dripping like warm honey.
“Guys… I don’t even want it, okay? But objectively the TV should go to me because most of you will just throw the remote through the screen during the second round of the playoffs. I’ll actually use it to watch teams that win.”
yes, it’s pretty noticeable Bo…
both jalen and KAT needed to take a step back offensively, for the sake of better balance, ironic because scoring is their strongest skillset…
KAT’s extension eligible this year i think, so a lot to ask him to reduce his points per game this season…haven’t checked to see if KAT’s assists have increased, or if jalen’s usage has decreased, someone mentioned his time dribbling has gone down…
my big offense concern was us shooting too many threes too quickly, it was crushing our transition defense, which is already hurting from playing 5 on 4 with either KAT or jalen disappeared off the court somewhere after lunging at the rim…
wonder what was up with mitch freaking out a couple of times and tossing the ball to someone with a different jersey, that was unexpected, both times…
Hey Geo, just checked out of boredom, Jalen’s USG% is actually up a bit, from 29.5 last year to 32.1 this year (two years ago it was 32.5).
Meanwhile, KAT’s assists are up, 3.4 to 3.1 last year, but he had a number of years in the mid-4s in Minnesota, so there’s that.
Meanwhile KAT’s FGA are well down, from 16.9 last year to 15.5 this year.
And, lastly, Brunson’s FGA are well up, from 18.5 last year to 21.3.
I hated that move so much when they made I even mentioned it here even though it had nothing to do with the Knicks.
Their problem is they are old and often injured. So they get another guy who is old, often injured and clearly on his downside.
I didn’t think they’d be this bad, but they were one of the easier tosses among teams others might make title contenders.
re-watchimg yesterday’s game, gotta give the bucks credit for pivoting to green, rollins and turner…not sure how much porter junior will help when he returns, but if giannis can stay in the lineup they should be able to get back to .500, and maybe stay a little above through the season…
I was excited about the possibility of owning the trademark but then I googled NBA cup hangover and there were many results, some as early as 2023:
https://amp.foxsports.com/stories/nba/is-nba-in-season-tournament-hangover-real-lakers-and-pacers-are-finding-out
Both participants in the 2023 final lost 6 of their next 8 games, and the GMs polled in that article all seemed to think it wasn’t a coincidence.
Hart was fantastic last night. Deuce was on fire. Kolek looks competent. Yabu ate some minutes, possibly literally
Kolek had some (uncharacteristic) brain farts, but so did a number of Knicks (Mitch having already been called out for his two bizarrely errant passes). Oddly enough they only had 12 turnovers, it felt more like 18 or so. Mikal (of course) and Miles with zero each.
I’m never gotten into the NBA all-in-ones largely bc they seem to be behind a paywall but also bc I don’t think the methodology is sound enough to be treated like WAR, but the guys on that Hot Hand podcast were saying KAT’s EPM (the backward looking one that was just updated, not the forward-looking one) indicates he is extremely well integrated, he’s just not shooting well. This is more EB’s area of expertise, though. I’m just getting it second hand.
NBA just announced if Knicks lose at Toronto they’ll host the loser of Orlando Miami that Sunday.
I haven’t watched the Lakers so maybe there’s a good basketball reason Luka is suddenly averaging a whopping 3.2 more FTAs per 36 than his career average, but it might just suggest the Lakers do indeed have a special whistle.
https://dunksandthrees.com/epm/actual
“Actual” is this season. Player search function works on my mobile but behind paywall for my computer.
“Expected” is the prediction moving forward and incorporates past seasons. Player search works for my mobile & computer.
I don’t think “actual” is very stable this early in the season, so I’m not sure it means much. KAT’s “expected” offensive number is +3.1 and his “actual” (this year) offensive number is +2.3.
It’s a very good number but still a meaningful drop.
Macri also insisted on his postgame last night that he thought KAT’s process throughout the game was good; he just shot poorly.
Karl made 1-6 of his shots at the rim last night he should make a couple more of those most nights
Alan, I got Shamet + Dadiet to work… maybe it was a mirage? Anyway, I’m not sure it’s worth it.
Also, call me krazy, but I’m high on Kolek! I think he’s got what it takes to stick in this league.
I thought KAT looked solid facilitating. He just blew a bunch of layups. I still don’t really see where the offense generates great looks for him when he’s the C though.
I think there may have been a couple possessions where Hart acted as the “center” on offense in the dribble handoff sets.
Seems to me like this year we are asking KAT to create his own offense too much. He has a .533 assisted basket percentage on 2-pointers, which is well below his career mark of .596. By the eye test it sure seems like there’s a lot of iso-KAT going on— KAT gets the ball at the three point line and tries to take his guy off the dribble.
It looks to me at least like he’s expending tremendous amounts of energy on those plays. I’d be looking to get him some more easy looks. His FtR is up a bit but I’m not sure it’s worth it.
Thought just hit me…we may end up having 2 true DPOY candidates this season. Anunoby is always gonna Anunoby on that end- he just keep up his current level when he returns. But Bridges, man! He has been the prime Draymond of wings so far. The way he’s been reading the floor defensively this season is next level. Considering the way he and Anunoby are able to defend the whole court as wings with crazy range, all we need is to hold up at the POA and our defense will be fine once it settles. I love the way Deuce defends the POA, and I won’t hate it if he remains the starting SG once OG is back. But that would mean we can’t start Mitch. Mikal playing at this high a level defensively is gonna give Mike Brown so much defensive flexibility as to what type of defense he wants to play. Nights we want to prioritize rim protection, Mitch can start. Nights we want the passing lanes to close, we can start either Deuce or Hart depending on how well the opponent can rebound the ball. And with Hart playing confident on offense, any spacing worries with him on the floor are less of an issue IMO.
However, say Brown wants a dependable backup center behind Mitch. I think we can afford to send Yabusele to Phoenix for Richards. I might actually prefer that because I think Diawara can provide what Yabusele has given so far, even though I have no problem waiting on Yabusele to heat up. What would make me even more comfortable moving Yabu is a trade idea I saw this morning. It suggested moving one of he or Dadiet to Utah for Hendricks. I’d move Dadiet for Hendricks in a heartbeat. Should they decide they like that idea as much as I do, they should look to move Yabu for a dependable backup C, because Brown clearly doesn’t trust Hukporti. So, come Dec 15, I would see if Phoenix is interested. And if they do accept that deal, we can ship Dadiet and Hukporti to Utah if they ask for another piece for Hendricks. I would assume they wouldn’t though- Hendricks really isn’t in the rotation. If we were able to pull those 2 trades off we’d have a deep and flexible roster to throw all kinds of looks at teams on both ends of the floor. It would require a huge buy in because we’d have a few players who are good enough to play rotation minutes that would sit depending on the matchup, but not quite good enough to force Brown to play them- unless Shamet ends up out of the rotation this season.
There are several issues that arise when KAT goes full iso.
1) his tendency to hook, push off, etc., causing offensive fouls.
2) his tendency to end up on his ass behind photographer’s row and then trail a 4-on-5 going the other way, especially when he misses.
3) his tendency to get stripped, to force a bad pass, or to just throw something up at the rim.
Despite these issues, he absolutely has to do a lot of this for us to be successful. I just wish he was less prone to bad outcomes when he does it, especially against good defensive teams with smart players and coaches.
The IST is nice, but it seems to me a sneaky method to add parity to the league. Eight good teams end up playing extra games against each other. There are four first round games, and two second round games and someone has to lose so that’s three losses for top NBA teams. Then the bottom teams meanwhile play at least that many games against each other because they are not in the elimination rounds. This gives at least three extra wins for less good teams because someone has to win those games. Adding easy games at the bottom and tough games at the top will reduce the spread between top and bottom teams, i.e. increase parity.
And, even though I hate for us to lose any game, I want us to lose in the IST semi-final. The arguments above make it clear that there can be a hangover from winning, In addition, just the idea of an 83 game season instead of an 82 game one worries me. We need all the rest and health that we can get.
I still think Bagley and Landale are our best options. I like both more than Richards and they should both be cheaper, too, bc Phoenix isn’t going to tank like Washington & Memphis.
One interesting option has developed, though: Brook Lopez might become available
on the buyout market. He might be washed, though.
Nick Richards has a worse EPM and BPM than Yabu this season. I’m not sure this is a trade we want to make.
Collectively, that team is washed lol. Brook Lopez would be a great addition though. I think he has enough left to contribute on a team where all he needs to do is protect the rim, box out, and make open shots. I’d be happy with either him or Richards. Bailey is interesting too, but will he hold up defensively? At least be better than KAT or Yabu defensively at the 5?
The Hornets benched Lamelo and ripped off a big run to tie up the Raptors in regulation and win in OT, their announce team was calling it like it was game 7 of the finals
Raptors just lost in OT at Charlotte, no reason Knicks shouldn’t win tomorrow vs Toronto.
The Hornets benched Lamelo and ripped off a big run to tie up the Raptors in regulation and win in OT, their announce team was calling it like it was game 7 of the finals
believe it or not that was actually a subdued performance on the eric collins scale, he may have been ill. lamelo getting benched for the fourth and overtime sends him even further into the boy band of offense-only former wunderkinds who have suddenly become very available, along with ja and trae.
Jokic has 6 FGAs and 23 points lmao
Famous last words, BBA?
I’ll be ready with the worst loss of the season comment midway thru the 2nd quarter if the Knicks are losing 😂
It’s not easy to build a serious contender when your star “PG” plays no defense. He’ll get attacked relentlessly by good teams. But it takes awhile for teams to figure out their “star” is the problem when he’s doing a lot of the scoring and playmaking. You need a couple all defense wings and the right C to have a chance or you’ll only get so far. It’s WAY harder to hide a single bad defender these days. If you have two, you have real problems.