Tom Thibodeau appears to be growing tired of his starters’ struggles. Derrick Rose sounded the alarm, that everyone needs to find the urgency button.
After their third straight home loss, and fourth in five games, the Knicks weren’t treating this as just another defeat. This 112-100 setback to the shorthanded defending-champion Bucks didn’t sit well. Alternating wins and losses isn’t good enough, and not being able to protect their home court won’t get it done.
“You know what they say. When it’s 10 games, you say we need 20,” Thibodeau said, when asked how long it should take for his starters to find cohesion. “When it’s 20, you say 30, When it’s 30, you say it’s 40. Before you know it, the season’s over. It’s a bunch of bull—t.”
The first unit, sluggish and passive, dug the Knicks (7-5) a 24-point hole. The starters played poorly in the first half and were worse in the third quarter, hearing loud boos from the angry crowd. RJ Barrett posted a minus-28 rating. Julius Randle was minus-26. Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier, who managed just two points apiece, were minus-22. The group settled for long jumpers, didn’t defend the 3-point line and spent too much time watching Randle isolate.
“We didn’t play well. That’s it,” Thibodeau said. “We got to figure it out.”
Thibodeau responded by benching the unit over the final 14:01. In their place, the Rose-led reserves played spirited basketball, rallying the Knicks back to even. They played with energy and intensity, forcing turnovers, moving the ball, flying all over the court. Ultimately, the group ran out of gas and fell short in an avalanche of Bucks’ 3-pointers.
“We try to ease into games, we try to get a feel instead of being aggressive,” Rose said. “A lot of times you have to be the aggressor, let people know you’re there. That’s not only the starting five, that’s the bench coming in playing lackadaisical, like nonchalant. We picked it up late, but that’s everybody. We’re not that good to give people confidence. We got to come out and be the hardest-working team. We got to learn soon.”
The loss continued their recent problems at home. The Knicks are now 2-4 at the Garden and 5-1 on the road. Nobody had an explanation for that concerning trend. Their perimeter defense remained a major problem, too, allowing the Bucks to shoot 52 percent (26 of 50) from deep. Reserve Pat Connaughton hit eight of them and two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo had 15 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists. Rose led the Knicks with 22 points, seven assists and three steals, and Immanuel Quickley had 18 points.
At one point, the Knicks trailed by 24. Even the shots of Celebrity Row showed disappointed faces. But when Thibodeau went to his bench, the somber atmosphere eventually turned raucous.
After Alec Burks’ 3-pointer hit every part of the rim before dropping in, it became deafening at MSG. That 24-point deficit was now four, following a furious 21-3 run. A few possessions later, Quickley got the Knicks all the way even at 89, hitting a step-back 3-pointer with 5:06 left. But the Bucks answered from deep and built their lead back into double figures after three straight Connaughton 3s.
“I’m still trying to process it. It’s hard losing games, period,” Rose said. “When you’re that close, it makes it even harder. It sucks. It really sucks. We got to be able to learn from our mistakes and that’s coming with [more] urgency.”