Knicks Struggles Continue In Blowout Loss To Mavericks As MSG Crowd Boos Hometown Team

The New York Knicks were crowned NBA In-Season Cup Champions on December 16, and ever since then, they have dropped 10 of their last 17 games and are just 2-8 dating back to December 30.

The latest loss came on Monday evening at home against the Dallas Mavericks, a blowout right out of the gate. The Mavericks went on to destroy the Knicks 114-97, giving the Knicks faithful little to cheer about.

Knicks coach Mike Brown had very little to discuss with his teammate at halftime, saying, “There was nothing to be said at halftime except for lock in and do your … do your job,” showing some frustration within the lockerroom.

Brown is in his first year with the Knicks, and during this significant slump, it seems he may have lost his players’ respect. During a timeout, it looked as if Knicks captain Jalen Brunson was having a players-only meeting in the middle of the game, with Brown and his coaches not seen in the huddle during the timeout.

Brunson was named an All-Star starter in the Eastern Conference earlier Monday, but that is not on his mind as the Knicks try to navigate this prolonged slump. Brunson said, “There’s been a lot of things to pinpoint, but I mean as a team we know what we have to do… It’s either we do it, we care enough to do it, or we don’t.”

Forward Josh Hart spoke on the team’s effort, saying, “It was embarrassing.” Hart was cleared to return from injury before the game.

The Knicks decided to move on from coach Tom Thibodeau in the off-season after an Eastern Conference Finals loss to the Indiana Pacers, but did they move on too quickly?

The Knicks are still the three seed in the Eastern Conference, but are only 1.5 games above the play-in. with 39 games remaining.

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Article by Sam Lanier