Game Preview: San Antonio Spurs vs New York Knicks
The Spurs look for their 3rd straight win tonight against the New York Knicks The New York Knicks are set to face San Antonio Spurs in a crucial game, where they sit in 3rd place in the Eastern Confernce. The Spurs, however, are currently on a 2-game winning streak and morale is high. The Knicks have been without their key player, OG Anunoby, for several weeks due to an elbow injury. Despite injuries, the Knicks have continued to pile up wins. Jalen Brunson has taken on even more offensive responsibility in his 2nd season with the Knicks, averaging over 20 shot attempts a night for the first time in his career, increasing his scoring to 27 PPG. Donte DiVincenzo, the third of the "Villanova Triplets," is having a career year in his first season with New York.
نشرت : منذ 4 أسابيع بواسطة Tanner Bowen في Sports
The New York Knicks have been one of the better stories in the NBA the last few years. The defensive-minded, culture-setting leadership of NBA lifer Tom Thibodaeu laid the groundwork before last year’s addition of offensive wizard Jalen Brunson, adding to a formula that has Knicks fans more excited about April, May, and June than they have been since the 90s. A trade with the Toronto Raptors for wing OG Anunoby in January gave them the much-needed length on the perimeter and reliable 3-point shooting that they were lacking, but they’ve been without him for the better part of 7 weeks as he deals with an elbow injury. As a whole, the Knicks have actually been pretty beat up for awhile now, but they’ve continued to pile up wins and now sit in 3rd place in the Eastern Confernce, injuries and all.
Meanwhile for the Spurs, morale in San Antonio should be the highest it’s been in quite some time. Their 5 wins in March match January for their most wins in a month this season, while they come into tonight’s game on a 2-game winning streak. This current streak is just their 3rd win streak total during this long, trying season. Sure it’s only two games long, but the flashes that have been seen throughout the season from various guys are beginning to come into focus, as a handful of those losses this month could have gone either way. A few more wins would go a long way for this squad as the year winds down and focus turns fully to the 2024-2025 season.
Spurs Injuries: Keldon Johnson, knee (day to day), Charles Bassey, out for the year
Knicks Injuries: Julius Randle, shoulder (OUT), OG Anunoby, elbow (OUT), Alec Burkes, shoulder (day to day),
What to watch for
• Jalen Brunson has taken on even more offensive responsibility in his 2nd season with the Knicks. The 5th year guard out of Villanova is averaging over 20 shot attempts a night for the first time in his career, increasing his scoring to 27 PPG while still maintaining most of the consistency he showed last season in his first season as, “The Guy.” Brunson is capable of an off-shooting night, but he’s relentless regardless of whether or not the shots are falling.
• Devin Vassell has six 30 point games in his career, all coming this season. If he can add another tonight against a staunch Knick defense, he would have 3 in this month alone. Outside of a pair of single digit scoring games this month, Vassell has really started to look like a guy capable of playing next to Victor Wembanyama when this team takes the eventual next step.
• Josh Hart is the perfect do-it-all kind of player. He’s a good secondary ball handler with a so-so shot and a Eurostep that seemingly no one can stop and is completely comfortable either starting or coming off the bench. His most notable characteristics though are his tough-nosed defense and his knack for rebounding the ball. This is especially true on the offensive side, where he ranks first among guards with 110 total offensive boards this season. His 577 total rebounds are also first in the league among guards.
• Donte DiVincenzo, the third of the Knicks, “Villanova Triplets,” alongside Brunson and Hart, is having a career year in his first season with New York. He scored a career-high 40 points in the Knicks’ recent win over the Detroit Pistons, going 11/20 from beyond the arc.
• Knicks center Mitchell Robinson came off the bench in the Knicks’ victory over the Toronto Raptors Wednesday night in his first game since undergoing ankle surgery back in December. Isaiah Hartenstein, who has started for New York since Robinson’s injury, remains the starter.
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المواضيع: Basketball, NBA, New York Knicks, San Antonio Spurs