The New York Knicks' 109-94 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday was sobering. The new-look Cavaliers, led by James Harden and Donovan Mitchell, were always supposed to have an annoyingly explosive offense to try and slow down. But it was the Knicks' 11-point third quarter that sealed their fate that night, with Cleveland's defense holding them to 3-24 shooting from the field. That was the Knicks' worst shooting quarter since a 3-20 fourth quarter against the Boston Celtics in 2018, a troubling statistic for an offensively-focused team to record in a scoring-first era of NBA basketball.
Knicks' third-quarter woes in Cleveland show what rock bottom looks like
It probably doesn't get worse than going 3 for 24 in a quarter against a fellow Eastern Conference contender. It makes the "fellow" in that sentence feel like it's doing more work than it should be. The Knicks trailed by just six points at halftime, with the Cavaliers taking a 60-54 lead into the break.
The 23-11 third quarter left New York in the dust. The Cavs' lead grew to as large as 20 points in the middle of the fourth quarter, and the Knicks clearly didn't have another comeback in them like the one that left them victorious last weekend against Houston.
Karl-Anthony Towns' offensive struggles resurface in Cavs loss
After five straight games in which he scored 20 points or more, and two straight 25-point performances, Karl-Anthony Towns had an oddly efficient dud against the Cavaliers. It feels strange to even describe the performance as a dud, given that Towns made every shot he took. But the catch is that Towns only took five shots against the Cavs.
One of those shots was a 3-pointer, and the big man made three of his four three throw attempts. That left him with 14 points on top of the seven rebounds and two assists he tallied over the course of the game. He also had one steal and two blocks, fulfilling some of the centerly duties that Josh Hart challenged him to earlier in the season.
Most notably, though, Towns had just as many turnovers as shot attempts, or made shots, in the game with five. Just one of those turnovers was an offensive foul, which he logged in the fourth quarter. He only had one in the third quarter, which came when Evan Mobley pressured him into losing the ball above the break.
It's not Towns' fault that the Knicks had their worst quarter in eight years against the Cavaliers. But he can be a major part of the solution to this problem. If the Knicks work to get him involved, and Towns positions himself properly, they can make enough magic happen to prevent another 12-minute dud like this.