Knicks rout Wizards, 121-105, win 4th in a row
WASHINGTON — Timeout, Tom Thibodeau.
The Knicks’ first-half lead in the second leg of a back-to-back against the Wizards on Saturday ballooned as large as 26.
And then came the Wizards. Stop after stop. Bucket after bucket.
The Knicks’ lead evaporated to as little as five.
Thibodeau flailed his arms in frustration. This couldn’t be the same team that defeated two championship contenders in the three games that followed the OG Anunoby trade with the Raptors.
Thibodeau’s timeout at the 5:23 mark of the third quarter changed the game. Veteran big man Taj Gibson urged his teammates to remain calm. To relax.
These were the same Wizards, after all, who entered the night with just six wins in 34 tries on the season.
They would pick up their 29th loss of a disappointing season, a 121-105 victory pushing the Knicks to a perfect 4-0 after trading RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley to Toronto.
With the victory, the Knicks (21-15) have vaulted to fourth in the Eastern Conference standings.
Only one game separates them from the eighth seed. There are three teams (Boston, Milwaukee and Philadelphia, in that order) reigning atop the East. All other teams appear to be racing to fourth.
Julius Randle dominated the Wizards to the tune of 39 points, seven rebounds and five assists, and Jalen Brunson added 33 points and eight assists.
The Knicks allowed Kyle Kuzma (27 points) and Deni Avdija (23) to combine tor 50 points, but Washington’s third-quarter run proved too little, too late.
The Wizards outscored the Knicks, 26-11, prior to Thibodeau’s timeout but only eventually won the period by four points.
The Knicks took their foot off the gas — exactly what their head coach suggested they couldn’t do against a team with a poor record moments ahead of tipoff on Saturday,
“Look: You can’t get to the NBA without being a great player. I say it all the time, and 1-to-15, 1-to-17, your two-way guys, you don’t get here — everyone is capable of beating you, and you have to understand that,” he said. “That’s why it’s so important to have a routine as to how you prepare for each game. And so they all count the same.
“I’ve coached [Wizards starting point guard] Tyus Jones. I know how good he is. [Jordan] Poole has had big monster games. Kuzma has had big monster games. Gallinari has had big games. They’ve got a lot of good players. So they’re young. It takes time, but they’re very explosive. They play fast, they attack the paint, you’ve gotta be ready.”
Meanwhile, Knicks fans infiltrated the Capital One Arena like the insurrectionists did the White House three years to the day.
“Let’s go Knicks!” chants rained onto to the floor as if the Knicks were playing at Madison Square Garden.
The Wizards came as close as 74-69 about midway through the third quarter. From that point on, the Knicks outscored them 47-36.
In his fourth game as a Knick, Anunoby scored nine points on 4-of-7 shooting. He put the nail in the coffin with a two-handed put-back dunk at the 3:56 mark of the fourth quarter.
The Wizards immediately called timeout.
Former Golden State Warriors star Jordan Poole turned in yet another poor shooting performance and finished with 10 points on 4-of-10 shooting from the field and 1-of-5 shooting from downtown. On one first-half possession, he had numbers in transition but pushed the ball up to the foul line extended and side-stepped out to the 3-point line before hoisting a shot from the right wing.
A bad shot with an even worse miss.
The Knicks outscored the Wizards by a 24 points in Josh Hart’s 32 minutes off the bench, and Isaiah Hartenstein logged 19 rebounds, four steals and two blocks to go with eight points.
After a brief road trip, the Knicks return home to host the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday. Another team with a losing record to help New York solidify its standing in the top-four of the East.
