Knicks game notes, observations: Who’s a starter now?

The New York Knicks were delivered a blowout loss by the Miami Heat, with difficulties along the way.

The New York Knicks walked into South Beach on a three-game losing streak, despite each one presenting a resilient squad, headlined by head coach David Fizdale. There were some positive takeaways from the youth and the scoring output of the veterans, but that dissipated Wednesday.

The Miami Heat, after being down 27-18 in the first quarter, blew past the Knicks, 110-85 This included a 41-point second quarter and what Knicks commentator Walt “Clyde” Frazier called an “annihilation.”

Even a drastic scoring differential presented notes and observations from the night, as New York dropped to 1-4 just 48 hours before a matchup against the Golden State Warriors.

• If Fizdale was serious about evaluating the starting lineup, as noted by The New York Post, this game should do it. The Knicks played well in the previous three losses, but didn’t close out on Miami three-point shooters and allowed Hassan Whiteside to patrol the paint.
• Lance Thomas and Trey Burke are probably the two to go, if anyone, from this starting lineup. Thomas is a fine defensive-minded player, but is better suited for the bench. Burke can shoot, but his defensive struggles were apparent tonight.
• Damyean Dotson continues to earn his way into Fizdale’s rotation. The second-year pro didn’t play the first two games, but has since taken a main bench role and even led the Knicks in minutes versus Miami (34).

• To push his case for a starting role, Dotson scored 20 points and snagged 10 rebounds. With that, New York has a double-double in all five games.
• A relatively quiet night from Enes Kanter and Tim Hardaway Jr., who had 14 points on 40 percent shooting.
• Mario Hezonja looks terrific when the three-point shot falls, but his shot selection was questionable, even when the Knicks were down and desperate for points. He left a 4-for-15 mark from the field.
• Luke Kornet made his season debut in garbage time. Games like this are probably the only times he sneaks into the box score, which puts his 15-man status in question when Allonzo Trier’s 45 days expire.
• Mitchell Robinson found fourth quarter time, which led to a block, a putback and a slick dunk. Baby steps for the second-rounder, who still needs a trip to Westchester for consistent action.

• When the game ended, Dwyane Wade presented his game-worn jersey to Fizdale, with what appeared to be signatures or a message written. Classy move, as the two worked together when the Knicks head coach was an assistant in Miami from 2008-16.

The Knicks have off Thursday, but will return to the court on Friday, Oct. 25 against the Warriors at 7:30 p.m. ET.