Knicks Get Back on Track in Utah

Obi Toppin is now shooting 42.4% from behind the arc this season. He's also north of 49% from the field and has yet to miss a free throw (9-for-9).

One of the reasons Jalen Brunson was so highly sought-after this offseason was because he boosted his stock by cooking the Jazz in the first round of the 2022 playoffs. 

And with the Knicks desperately needing a victory to right the ship this season, Brunson delivered in Utah once again, racking up 25 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter, to go along with eight assists, three boards and three steals.

After New York's embarrassing blowout loss to the Thunder in MSG on Sunday - and players-only dinner on Monday - the Knicks began their five-game road trip by handing the Jazz their third straight defeat Tuesday night, 118-111. 

When the team landed in Utah, Julius Randle organized a dinner in the hopes of building some camaraderie. RJ Barrett told reporters that the goal of the get-together was "to hold each other accountable."

Randle said the team "just got together, spent a little time with each other off the court, watched the football game, watched the Eagles lose, so great day." (The Eagles knock was an unveiled shot at Brunson, a huge Philly fan, from the Dallas-born Randle). 

"It was good, good to have a team dinner like that," said Barrett following the Knicks shootaround. "Try to figure this out the best that we can. We all care, trying to get this going on the right track."

Barrett scored 18 points in the victory but wasn't very efficient on the offensive end Tuesday night, shooting just 5-of-18 from the floor and 8-of-14 from the charity stripe. He missed all five of his three-point attempts. Randle was also relatively quiet, finishing with 15 points, five rebounds and one assist vs. four turnovers. 

Yet, in true Knicks fashion, despite the victory, the evening wasn't without some drama regarding the head coach's decision-making. 

The Knicks were trailing by four points (76-80) late in the third quarter when Obi Toppin checked in. Obi, along with his buddy Immanuel Quickley, helped spark a pivotal New York run to close out the third that carried into the fourth quarter. 

Halfway through the final frame, the Knicks had built a ten-point lead. At that point, with 6:20 left in regulation, Thibs sent in Randle to replace Toppin. The Jazz would whittle the lead down to six points over the next few minutes before Brunson and Cam Reddish made big plays down the stretch to secure the victory. 

Over the final 6:20, Randle didn't score a single point, grab a rebound, or dish out an assist. #KnicksTwitter was flummoxed by the decision to yank Obi and go with Randle, and rightfully so. 

In Sunday's ridiculous loss to OKC, RJ Barrett played only two minutes in the second half. Afterward, Tom Thibodeau said, "We just got behind by so much that we were just looking for life. And that group that was in there (after Barrett subbed out) gave us a little bit of a spark. So that's what we went with."