GET TO THE POINT
Bottom out in Boston
As Bledsoe trade rumors swirl, Knicks still waiting to see what they have in injured rookie Ntilikina
BOSTON – Sometimes a beatdown can be a reality check.
For a Knicks team that might’ve been disillusioned into thinking it’s better than the talent suggests, reality seemed to arrive with the Celtics punishing them on Tuesday, 110-89.
“Obviously Boston is much more talented than us and they have more weapons,” Kristaps Porzingis conceded. “But that’s why we as a group – we have to play the right way and execute our stuff and do everything almost 100 percent right to win these type of games.”
That’s not what happened Tuesday. Not even close.
“Everything (went wrong),” Tim Hardaway Jr. said. “We couldn’t get anything offensively. We’re all out there just running like we don’t know what’s going on. It can’t happen.”
Hardaway Jr., for his part, shouldered much of the responsibility. And rightfully so. He continued his struggles as the $71 million man, shooting 2-for-11 with six points to bring his season shooting percentage to (shield your eyes) 24%.
But there was blame to spread around from this one-sided beatdown. Kristaps Porzingis missed 11 of his 14 attempts, finishing with just 12 points while being hounded by Boston’s defense. Celtics coach Brad Stevens has always found ways to frustrate Porzingis, and Tuesday was no different.
The Celtics (2-2) were a happier story at TD Garden. They are still trying to get over the loss of Gordon Hayward to that horrific leg injury, and the Knicks gave them plenty of reasons to feel good about themselves — mostly because of rookie Jayson Tatum (22 points) and Jaylen Brown (23).
Boston’s first bucket of the game was Tatum, a 19-year-old rookie, dunking on top of Hardaway’s head off an offensive board. It was a fitting start to TD Garden becoming a slaughterhouse Tuesday. The Knicks were the meat. Five minutes after Tatum’s dunk, Brown, 21, turned a steal into a double-pump reverse dunk. Boston was up by 20 early in the second quarter and cruising. The Knicks never again got the deficit closer than 16.
“You guys see it out there. It’s no secret,” Hardaway Jr. said. “We’re turning the ball over, lackadaisical out there. Nothing seems crisp really.”
Hardaway Jr., who was matched head-to-head with Brown, missed his first eight field-goal attempts. His lone point in the first half came on a free throw he didn’t even earn – a technical off a Celtics’ defensive 3 seconds violation.
“When the ball’s in my mind and I feel like I have daylight I feel like it’s leaving my hand really good, just like it did in preseason. It’s just either too long or too short, but they’re all on line,” Hardaway Jr. said. “And some rattle in, some rattle out, but I’m not going to stop shooting. Keep on shooting the ball. That’s what I’m here for. That’s what I do.”
The Knicks (0-3) are already in trouble. If they don’t win Friday against the Nets, they’ll be 0-4, playing Cleveland, Denver and Houston over a three-day stretch. In other words, they face the possibility of starting 0-7 before the schedule eases up.
But the Knicks are accustomed to losing at this point. Counting their 0-5 showing in preseason, they are winless since April. But none of the losses were as deflating as Tuesday’s.
With less than six minutes remaining and the Knicks trailing by 23, the starters were still on the court and looked like they wanted no part of this game.
“It’s one of those nights where you flush it down the toilet,” Jeff Hornacek said.