The weather was unseasonably warm in New York City on game night, and the temperature for the New York Knicks' first-round playoff series against the Detroit Pistons was also raised after the orange and blue escaped with a 123-112 Game 1 victory.
While the Knicks were able to take a 1-0 series lead over the upstart Pistons, their performance was anything but pristine and illustrated both their strengths and weaknesses in obvious fashion. The final score was not indicative of the kind of game it was, but a critical stretch deep in the game granted the Knicks a chance to win a contest that could have gone south. They weren't as lucky in Game 2, however, narrowly losing 94-100.
New York trailed by eight points entering the fourth quarter of Game 1 and had only been receiving consistent offense from OG Anunoby, who finished with 23 points, up until that moment. But they were able to battle back thanks in large part to a 21-0 run. Cameron Payne provided a jolt of electricity to begin the frame and tallied 14 points on the night.
“I [am one of] the oldest guys on the team, so having somebody into the game, it’s a different kind of experience, especially for the rookies,” Payne said. “We’re in the NBA, sometimes people have the chill [mindset], just chilling. I’m happy to be in the league, I enjoy it, so I try to just have fun every single night.
“I could be doing something else, but I’m playing in the Garden. I gotta have fun. I just try my best to bring my energy and it’s infectious. Everybody feeds off it. That’s a good feeling.”
The Knicks show their volatility in Game 1 and 2 against the Pistons
Jalen Brunson, Karl Anthony Towns, and Josh Hart were also key after starting poorly. Brunson posted a team-high 34 points along with eight assists. Towns put up 23 points and 11 rebounds. Hart collected 13 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
"It turned rather quickly,” Brunson said. “It was a quick turnaround, and I’m just happy with the way we played in the fourth.”
If not for a thunderous fourth quarter that woke up MSG, the Knicks might have lost to a Pistons team that did not receive a stellar performance from Cade Cunningham. The 23-year-old was only 8-21 from the field, and Detroit was fortunate to receive 45 combined points from Tobias Harris and Malik Beasley.
The Knicks showed that they can be a scary playoff team that can catch fire at any given moment. But, they also revealed themselves as a squad who can sometimes be stagnant and iso-dependant on offense. It remains to be seen which version of New York will show up for the rest of their first round series against Detroit.