Knicks gonna Knick.
Rap Up has Oren, Louis and Zarar:
 | Knicks | 87 | Final Box Score | 90 | Raptors |  |
 D | P. Siakam39 MIN, 13 PTS, 12 REB, 4 AST, 0 STL, 3-18 FG, 0-3 3FG, 7-8 FT, 1 BLK, 1 TO, +3 +/- When there’s no end-product at the end of a possession where you chose to dominate the ball, then the outcome of that possession is sort of on you. His proclivity for isolation basketball is great when the shot-making’s there but when it’s not, the team becomes easy to defend. Tonight he looked in a rush to get his shots, sacrificing his rhythm. The rim noticed and wasn’t tender. He also didn’t punish his mismatches, notably Rose, when on the last offensive possession he bailed the Knicks out with a terrible 22-foot fade. | |
 A | C. Boucher28 MIN, 14 PTS, 8 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 5-11 FG, 1-3 3FG, 3-4 FT, 1 BLK, 1 TO, +5 +/- He must’ve cost Vegas a lot of money by making two shots in a row. Two straight games of good play had the same underlying formula: hustling on the glass and hustling when not on the glass, in fact, this guy should be hustling all the time even when there’s no need to hustle. His hustle right now has to make up for his talent, and that’s a tall ask of hustle. Nice job on the offensive glass late in the game to keep it alive for the eventual game-winning three. | |
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 A | S. Barnes41 MIN, 12 PTS, 15 REB, 3 AST, 2 STL, 6-12 FG, 0-1 3FG, 0-0 FT, 2 BLK, 1 TO, +14 +/- He has a genuine willingness to play team basketball and will actively defer individual opportunity to what to him has been described as the greater good. But, when push comes to shove and people aren’t doing their bit, he has no problem taking control and using his God-given talents to overpower. The team needs to catch up to him, both in talent and speed of thinking. Check out the pass in the second clip below. | |
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 B+ | F. VanVleet38 MIN, 17 PTS, 6 REB, 11 AST, 3 STL, 4-13 FG, 4-11 3FG, 5-5 FT, 1 BLK, 3 TO, +13 +/- If you’re ever wondering just what impact Fred VanVleet has on this team, I point you to Exhibit A, the second quarter where Nurse decided to play the Bambis unchecked. Rose dissected them to bring the Knicks back all the way down from 20. Only when VanVleet was restored, so was order. Two big steals on Randle in the second were a thing of beauty, and made Randle look kind of stupid. | |
 A | G. Trent Jr.39 MIN, 24 PTS, 1 REB, 1 AST, 3 STL, 9-16 FG, 5-7 3FG, 1-2 FT, 0 BLK, 2 TO, +4 +/- The pull-up game was working early, which meant he started in rhythm. That rhythm was needed on the massive three that gave the Raptors the lead, after they were rewarded for the intensity of their offensive rebounding. The Raptors may be a bad defensive rebounding team, but that reputation isn’t present on the offensive side. | |
 D- | Y. Watanabe17 MIN, 4 PTS, 4 REB, 0 AST, 1 STL, 1-6 FG, 1-5 3FG, 1-2 FT, 1 BLK, 0 TO, -6 +/- You do not have the right to fire away a transition three with no rebounders underneath right after you blow a FT, which came on the heels of blowing an easy chance for an And1. I don’t know what’s gotten into his game, but he’s starting to remind of Antoine Wright, and that’s not a good thing. His three did end a 7-0 run at one point and I got a feeling he’s going to look for that highlight and buy the NFT. | |
 F | J. Champagnie8 MIN, 0 PTS, 0 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 0-0 FG, 0-0 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, +8 +/- Look at those 0’s. I mean, just look at them. | |
 F | M. Flynn5 MIN, 1 PTS, 0 REB, 1 AST, 0 STL, 0-2 FG, 0-1 3FG, 1-2 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -2 +/- With Banton struggling got a chance in the second half. He could’ve made a name for himself by finishing on this one drive, but heard the steps and the Lord spoke to him: “Thou shall hit it so high off the glass that thou will miss embarrassingly and thus you will be benched”. | |
 F | D. Banton7 MIN, 0 PTS, 0 REB, 1 AST, 0 STL, 0-2 FG, 0-0 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -17 +/- I have no notes on Dalano for this game, only memories where I recall wondering just what he’s good at. He seemed overmatched physically and in the less-than-stellar spacing of the Raptors offense, he didn’t have the eye to find the seam. | |
 B | S. Mykhailiuk16 MIN, 5 PTS, 2 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 2-7 FG, 1-4 3FG, 0-0 FT, 1 BLK, 0 TO, -7 +/- Somewhat of a return to normal for Svi, who had a huge block on Robinson which he had no business getting. This guy’s made of granite, steel, platinum but with a heart of a Doctor’s Without Borders unpaid volunteer. | |
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 B | Nick Nurse This game might’ve been a blowout if Nurse had stepped on their throats in that second. Instead he busted out a lanky lineup with no point guard. It turns out good NBA PGs can dissect their way against slower guys, no matter how tall they are, which is what Rose did. See, being taller doesn’t make you quicker. Kudos for busting out a zone in the third to give Rose a different look. | |
