Coach Tom Thibodeau said when the Knicks play the right way, they are still capable of playing the role of spoiler.
That was something that became evident in their road win over the Hornets on Wednesday. The Knicks were playing on the second night of a back-to-back and without power forward Julius Randle. And the Hornets had won five straight.
“The important thing for us is to play winning basketball, play the right way, play hard and play unselfishly,” Thibodeau told reporters. “You can deal with a missed shot if it’s the right shot. But we made a number of plays tonight where a guy passed up a good shot and we ended up getting a better shot — and that’s winning basketball.”
RJ Barrett led the Knicks with 30 points and overall, they went 20-of-45 shooting on 3-pointers.
“We have a number of guys who can get into the paint and a number of guys who can shoot it as well,” Barrett said. “So when we can get in there and trust each other to make the right plays, that is tough to guard.”
The Knicks won’t be going to the playoffs, or even the play-in tournament. But wins like Wednesday show they’re not quite ready to roll over, either.
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