Knicks Lay an Egg in Orlando
Once the calendar flips to 2024, we'll start assessing potential trade options and be forced to confront the reality that Barrett and Grimes' league-wide value has plummeted precipitously.
Final Score: Knicks 108 - Magic 117
Record: 17-14
It was an ugly first half for the Knicks. Yet, somehow, the first half of the third quarter was even worse, with New York falling behind by as much as 20 points midway through the third. To their credit, the 'Bockers battled back, cutting the lead to five in the closing minutes. However, the deficit was too much to overcome, as New York dropped their second straight.
Outside of Julius Randle, who was unstoppable on the offensive end, there is plenty of blame to spread around. Even Jalen Brunson was sloppy vs. the Magic, tallying 20 points, seven rebounds, and eight assists, but shooting just 4-of-15 from the floor and committing three turnovers. Donte DiVincenzo also had a rare off night, missing all five of his three-point attempts.
And, of course, we have to talk about Barrett. It was tough to watch RJ in the first half, as he shot 2-of-9 from the floor, and most of the misses weren't even close. It was painfully apparent that Barrett lacked confidence in his jumper, which isn't surprising considering he is shooting below 40% from the floor and below 25% from downtown over the past month. If Clyde had been working the game last night, he would have undoubtedly pointed out that Barrett was aiming his shot.
However, we've discussed RJ in depth in recent days. And while it's certainly worth noting that Barrett led the team in playing time (37 minutes) vs. Orlando and was second in FG attempts (17), that's only part of the story.
One big-picture takeaway from the last two weeks is that the Knicks' current starting five has not been up to snuff. Friday was the fifth straight game New York started Brunson, DiVincenzo, Barrett, Randle, and Hartenstein. (To be fair, they've played some tough opponents in this stretch - Milwaukee twice, OKC, Orlando and Brooklyn). On the season, that five-man unit has appeared in ten contests and logged 102 minutes together.
While that's not a huge sample size, it's one of only four 5-man units for New York that have logged more than 100 minutes this season.
And the results have not been encouraging. New York has been outscored by 17 points in those 102 minutes.
This group has been solid offensively, scoring 117 points per 100 possessions. But they have been putrid on the defensive end of the floor, allowing a whopping 127.4 points per 100 possessions.
That's a Net Rating of -10.4. That's not good and has often left New York digging out of a hole to start each half.
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