A difficult night from the field led to the New York Knicks’ fourth loss in five games.
The New York Knicks worked through yet another double-digit deficit on the road, with the Orlando Magic as the opponent this time around. Once again, it resulted in a loss, 95-83, at the Amway Center.
Shooting just 37.8 percent from the field, the Knicks struggled to maintain any consistency. Few players were in a rhythm, while the Magic’s Nikola Vucevic, Aaron Gordon and Evan Fournier contributed solid efforts en route to their own victory.
The aftermath of the Knicks dropping to 1-4 follows how some of the main players graded out. Did anyone have a standout night?
Limiting the turnovers to just three, Julius Randle had 16 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. He was the point forward, dishing the ball most of the way, while Elfrid Payton and Dennis Smith Jr. missed the game. This will not happen every night, but the veteran power forward is a fine, secondary ball-handler for the Knicks.
This was hardly the explosion from Monday night, but Bobby Portis still had 12 points and 10 rebounds. They felt empty, though, as Portis shot 5-for-11 and 2-for-7 from three-point range. Similar performances to the revenge outing cannot be consistently expected moving forward.
12 points, four rebounds and three blocks in the first half gave Mitchell Robinson all the makings of a big night. While these numbers were fine, he added just one more rebound for the rest of the game, scoring zero points and failing to block another shot. With just one foul, coach David Fizdale curiously played him for just 19 minutes, despite Nikola Vucevic’s double-double.
Not every night will be All-Star-esque for RJ Barrett, who had just nine points, two rebounds and two assists in 30 minutes. He should be fine moving forward.
After a stellar preseason and a fine opening night, Marcus Morris‘ stock has plummeted, featuring plenty of isolation basketball and some rough shooting nights. He went just 2-for-11 for nine points against Orlando. Coupled with a combined 6-for-18 on field goals in the previous two games, the Knicks need him to trend in the right direction.
The New York Knicks will return to the court on Friday, Nov. 1 against the Boston Celtics. Gametime is at 7:30 p.m. ET.