Knicks Knock Off LeBron and the Lakers in LA

Going forward, iHart needs to be the team's starting center.

Final Score: 114-109
Record: 15-11

Not only was Monday the Knicks' fifth game in eight days and the fourth and final contest of a grueling West Coast road trip, but the troops were banged up. 

Julius Randle was elbowed in the mouth in the second quarter and needed four stitches to close the wound. Jalen Brunson looked like a boxer courtesy of the massive welt under his right eye. Taj Gibson was limping. Isaiah Hartenstein's left arm was bloodied. Jericho Sims left the arena in a walking boot after spraining his ankle. 

Yet, somehow this gritty group of Knicks found a way to persevere, outlasting the Lakers and improving to four games over .500. After last Wednesday's loss to the Jazz, plenty of fans were worried this trip out West could be disastrous. However, after riding Jalen Brunson's heroics to a victory in Phonix and Monday's win in LA, New Yorkers have to be happy with the end result of the trip. 

We'll get to the phenomenal performances from Brunson and Randle in a bit, but the game ball from Monday's victory goes to Isaiah Hartenstein. 

As I detailed in Sunday's newsletter, the Knicks' defense has been deplorable in December, especially after Mitchell Robinson injured his ankle. With Jericho Sims starting at center, New York's first five were getting badly outplayed at the start of the first and third quarters on a nightly basis. Over the weekend, I asked: "How long will Thibs trot out the league's least impactful starting center?"

Well, Sims twisted his ankle on the opening tip Monday night and was benched after picking up two quick fouls just three minutes into the game. Enter iHart, who stepped in and stepped up. 

Tussling with Anthony Davis most of the evening, Hartenstein logged 38 minutes and ripped down a career-high 17 rebounds to go along with nine points (3-of-4 FGs), two assists, two steals, and two blocked shots. In the process, he became the first player in Knicks franchise history to tally at least 17 boards, two swipes and two swats off the bench. 

As noted above, Sims was seen in a walking boot after the game. Tom Thibodeau didn't provide an update on the Sims' status moving forward, but that's obviously not a good sign. Nonetheless, even when Sims is cleared to return to action, it appears Thibs' hand has been forced. Experimenting with Sims as the team's starting center was justifiable (Thibs didn't want to rob Peter to pay Paul), as the hope was Sims would be able to keep his head above water while allowing iHart to continue playing with the backups. But it became clear that the status quo was sustainable. 

Since Mitch Rob went down:

The Knicks' numbers with Sims on the floor:
Plus/Minus: -30
Defensive Rating: 118.5
Rebound Rate: 42.9%

Knicks numbers with Hartenstein on the floor:
Plus/Minus: +45 
Defensive Rating: 111.3
Rebound Rate: 52.9%

The 5-man unit of J. Randle - J. Brunson - D. DiVincenzo - R. Barrett - J. Sims has posted a Net Rating of -23.0 (by far the worst on the team) per 100 possessions in the 60 minutes they've played together this season.