The Knicks battled for a win in Detroit to avoid disaster against the shorthanded Pistons, but were once again reminded that they have a glaring starting lineup problem.
Detroit, missing nearly its entire roster due to health and safety protocols, is already one of the worst teams in the league at full strength, making the performance by New York's starters in the third quarter all the more embarrassing. Even with the Knicks history of awful teams over the last two decades, the third quarter of Wednesday night's game has an argument for the worst quarter of Knicks basketball so far this millennium.
In a quarter that saw the starters on the floor for almost its entirety, the Knicks were outscored 25-4, shooting a horrid 1-for-15 from the field and missing all six of their 3-point attempts. Meanwhile, Detroit's backups to the backups shot 11-for-14 in a glaring difference in energy and hustle that rightfully saw New York's starters relentlessly roasted on Twitter.
The Knicks trailed by 14 heading into the fourth quarter, and Tom Thibodeau emptied his bench. Within minutes, New York had the lead, rallying behind 34 points from Alec Burks, 19 of which came in the final period.
"It was vintage, the way he played," Thibodeau said.
The way the second unit played compared to the starters was startling to the naked eye, and even more glaring on the stat sheet. The plus/minus column for the Knicks on the night looked like it was photoshopped, but in reality, that was how much more cohesive the bench was compared to the unit that is supposed to be leading the way.
"When you look at the impact that Deuce [McBride] had with ball pressure, that was huge for us. Alec had a monster game...Taj Gibson, can't say enough about the guy. Obi [Toppin], energy plays, guarding Bey, who had it going pretty good. We had a number of guys step up.
"Their energy was real high. They played great. Just find a way to win."
The starters sat the entire fourth quarter, watching as the backups dug the team out of the mess the starters themselves created. It was the continuation of a narrative that has lasted throughout the season, and one that has to be figured out if New York wants to survive its tougher matchups.
"Usually, the bench guys come in and play and the starters come back and finish, and our bench guys are very supportive of the starters," Thibodeau said. "Our starters were very supportive of the bench guys closing the game, and that's what you need. You need to be a team."
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