A promising road trip turned into a disastrous journey for the New York Knicks. What went wrong during the losses to Atlanta Hawks and Houston Rockets?
If the New York Knicks are going to return to relevance, they must win the games they’re expected to win. Whether home or away, the Knicks must be able to defeat lesser opponents in order to successfully create a healthy culture and compete for the playoffs.
Unfortunately, the Knicks failed to capitalize on the opportunity for growth during the recent two-game road trip against the Atlanta Hawks and Houston Rockets.
The obvious answer for why New York fell short of victory against the Rockets is that neither Kristaps Porzingis nor Enes Kanter were active. Beyond that forgivable reality, however, is the undeniable truth that the Knicks underachieved on this brief road trip.
With an opportunity to improve to 12-7, the Knicks will instead head back home at 10-9 with a high-pressure game against the Portland Trail Blazers looming.
New York was expected to lose to Houston due to the absence of both Porzingis and Kanter. Against the lowly Hawks, however, the Knicks blew another big lead en route to a 116-104 loss to a team that entered the encounter at 3-15.
The question is: What exactly is responsible for the abysmal two-game road stretch that’s sent the New York Knicks back home searching for answers?