New York Knicks: Competitive losing opens 2019 against Nuggets

The New York Knicks stayed competitive with the Denver Nuggets but dropped yet another game to open 2019.

December was horrendous for the New York Knicks. They won just two games while closing 2018 on a six-game losing streak. Nothing went properly across a handful of cringe-worthy defeats, including the Dec. 29 game against the Utah Jazz.

Tuesday’s game versus the Denver Nuggets, however, was a productive follow-up. No, the Knicks did not win, but after the events of the past four weeks, their effort in a 115-108 loss to the Western Conference’s top team can’t go unnoticed.

The Knicks kept up in the shooting department, hitting 45.2 percent of their shots and over 40 percent from behind the arc. A fine performance, but not enough when Nikola Jokic has a triple-double and Malik Beasley fires 23 points off the bench.

Six Knicks were in double-figures, as Luke Kornet led the way with 19 points and four three-pointers. His role became a point of emphasis over the weekend, due to Enes Kanter’s unhappiness with a reduced role on the bench.

While Kornet is not a defensive force, he still offers a unique presence at center, that stretches the floor. Not even that, but also, about New York figuring out what they have in the second-year man. Kanter is a known commodity, compiling tip-ins and rebounds around the rim, but with questionable defense to complement this, which was on display, again.

The Turkish big man had 17 points and 12 rebounds in 20 minutes off the bench.

Otherwise, this game continued to make clear that the Knicks will stick with their youth; Courtney Lee, Trey Burke, Mario Hezonja and Lance Thomas were all benched. Burke and Hezonja are just 26 and 23, respectively, but have not played well enough to factor into the future.

Playing ahead of them, Kevin Knox delivered an 18-point performance to continue to solidify himself. He now owns 11 straight games of double-digit points and seems locked into a main scoring role. Frank Ntilikina also had 10 points off the bench.

• This was made to be Emmanuel Mudiay‘s redemption game. He played two-plus seasons with the Nuggets, before joining the Knicks via trade in February 2018. While not an eye-popping night, the former lottery pick had 15 points and nine assists on 7-for-20 shooting.

• Tim Hardaway Jr. found one of his most efficient nights of the past month: 16 points on 7-for-12 shooting.
• Noah Vonleh had a quiet 14 rebounds and five points.
• Head coach David Fizdale only used nine players, rather than the usual 10. That extra time went to the starters, all of whom played 26 or more minutes.
• As always, let’s see if Kanter continues to speak out about his reduced role. There are three days until the Knicks’ next game and plenty of time for something to develop. The trade deadline, if something were to happen, is just over one month away.

The New York Knicks will look to find their rhythm against the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday, Jan. 4 at 10:30 p.m. ET.