New York Knicks Will Look To Learn From Tough Losses
Despite the recent struggles, head coach Jeff Hornacek believes that the New York Knicks are heading in the right direction.
It’s safe to say there was a bitter taste left in the mouths of the New York Knicks after the Christmas game against the Boston Celtics.
That taste isn’t any sweeter after another dogfight loss against the Atlanta Hawks.
The latter was a much more chippy game than it was expected to be. A hard fought battle throughout the whole game led to Carmelo Anthony getting ejected in the second quarter. Derrick Rose and Jeff Hornacek also received technical fouls in the fourth quarter.
Once Anthony was ejected from the game, scoring came at a premium. The team relied heavily on Rose to take over, who shot 9-of-28 from the field.
A strong defensive performance kept the team in the game. According to the New York Knick’s Twitter page, Hornacek believes that the Knicks are headed in the right direction.
“I told our guys I felt it was a step forward for us, simply because we played pretty good defense,” Hornacek said. “There’s a couple plays in there that we didn’t make and they made.”
As much as the players don’t want to hear about moral victories, the Knicks may be starting to find their identity as a team.
“Trust” seems to be a recurring theme for the New York Knicks this season.
Going forward, the team must keep trusting one another on both sides of the ball. The defensive intensity and communication in Atlanta should be the standard from hereon out.
Offensively, the trio of Rose, Anthony, and Porzingis have to realize they all make each other better when on the court together. At times, they can rely too much on their scoring ability in isolations.
Courtney Lee also proved his value to the team in his absence. Currently second in the league in 3-point percentage (.467), the Knicks couldn’t replicate his performance. Sasha Vujacic, who replaced Lee in the starting lineup, shot 1-of-7 with only two points in 27 minutes.
For a team that mentioned bringing the intensity of the 90’s Knicks teams earlier in the season, they have yet to win one the “ugly” games that were a trademark for those teams.
New York will look to get back on track when they play Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Pelicans Friday night.
This is a resilient team, and we can expect the Knicks to play with a chip on their shoulder and that bitter taste in their mouths.
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