Knicks News: Kristaps Porzingis And Dwight Howard Discuss Matchup

The New York Knicks blew a 14 point lead against the struggling Houston Rockets at Madison Square Garden on Sunday evening.

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Coach Derek Fisher and company have now lost four straight games in a row, capping off their worst losing streak of the new season. After having control for a large majority of the game while at home, the Knicks were bedeviled by missed shots and turnovers, that ultimately lead to New York’s demise. This is one of the biggest problems for the team, as they once again failed to sustain a big lead against struggling teams they have a great chance of beating. However, there are a few positives that can be taken from this loss to the Rockets.

One example of this is the performance of Knick rookie, Kristaps Porzingis, who recorded another double-double with a stat line of 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting, along with 13 rebounds and 2 blocks on the game.

In his last match up against the Houston Rockets at the Toyota Center, Porzingis had one of his memorable performances wearing a Knicks uniform this season. The 7’3″ forward from Latvia recorded 24 points on 8-of-12 shooting, grabbed 14 rebounds, and blocked 7 shots, including two that came against All-Star James Harden.

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However, Dwight Howard didn’t get the chance to play against Porzingis in their first match up, due to the Rockets resting him on back to back games. But on Sunday night, Howard was able to make his impact on the game, even against the Knick rookie. One of his best plays Sunday evening was an alley-opp dunk right over Kristaps Porzingis. According to Marc Berman of the NY Post, Porzingis said that he will always remember the play from Dwight Howard and says he’s looking forward to playing him next time.

"“He dunked on me,’’“He got me. I was asking the guys, ‘When is the next game against Houston?’ But I got to wait until next season. It happens. He’s a great player. He dunked on me. I’m looking toward playing next time against him.’’"

After the game, Howard and Porzingis spoke for a short time after the game, per Marc Berman of the NY Post. The Rockets center also went on to discuss his thoughts on how the Knicks rookie has played so far throughout the season, and how his future will look in the NBA.

“I didn’t even think about the dunk, but after the game Porzingis said, ‘That was a nasty dunk,’ ” Howard said. “It was good playing against him. When they drew up the play, Marcus Thornton said, ‘You better go get it. Watching the draft, Knicks fans booed Porzingis,’’ Howard said. “But now it is a big love affair. Fans really embrace him. I like what he is doing on the floor. He is gifted. He’s going to be scary in a couple of years.’’

Even though Porzingis recorded yet another double-double against Dwight Howard in the game. The result was another disappointing Knicks loss in which another lead was blown in the fourth quarter. New York needs to find a way to start winning games again really soon, because this losing streak is definitely getting out of hand, and Knick fans are growing impatient once again.

Next: Jimmer Fredette Returns To D-League Squad

Hopefully they will be able to turn things around soon, and get back on the right track to where they were four games ago.

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