The Knicks looked like a machine through the first quarter against the Hawks on Wednesday night, running out to a 23-point lead against Trae Young and company at Madison Square Garden.
Then, seemingly out of nowhere, yet in all-too-familiar fashion, that machine combusted.
A 23-point lead vanished into a double-digit deficit by the third quarter, as New York suddenly looked lost on the defensive end, and helpless on the offensive end against a simple zone defense by Atlanta, while Dejounte Murray torched the Knicks in a disastrous third quarter that saw the team log as many turnovers as points.
Sound like an unprecedented collapse? Not for the Knicks, who have now blown a lead of 23 points or more three different times in the calendar year.
It's the third-largest blown lead that turned into a double-digit loss for the 'Bockers in the last three decades, as the team has now lost three straight games after a promising start to the season.
Even the presence of a competent point guard like Jalen Brunson wasn't enough to avoid a disastrous collapse that looked all too familiar.
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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