Knicks shoot for first win streak as Hornets visit
A week ago, the New York Knicks found themselves in the situation of enjoying prosperity after beating former center Kristaps Porzingis and the Dallas Mavericks.
They found success fleeting with a hideous effort against the Cleveland Cavaliers that infuriated owner James Dolan, and team president Steve Mills called a press conference that created speculation about coach David Fizdale's job security.
The Knicks beat Porzingis and the Mavericks again Thursday. Now they hope to avoid falling flat Saturday night when they host the Charlotte Hornets.
In the rematch with Dallas, New York's Marcus Morris hit the tiebreaking 3-pointer with 13 seconds left, giving New York a 106-103 win with a national audience watching on TNT. Morris, who scored 20 points, is performing the best out of any of New York's offseason additions, averaging a team-leading 18.6 points.
"My message to the team postgame is, 'You've got about 45 minutes to enjoy this one,'" Fizdale said at practice Friday. "And then you've got to move on to the next game. Whether it's good or bad, I think we've got to get to that place where we really lock into the next team."
New York enters with three wins in its first 12 games. Two are against Dallas, and the other was a stirring comeback against Chicago on Oct. 28.
After their previous two wins, the Knicks followed up poorly. They lost four straight games after getting their first win and then absorbed consecutive double-digit losses to Cleveland and at Chicago after recording the Nov. 8 victory in Dallas.
It was after New York trailed by as many as 30 in a 108-87 loss to the Cavaliers that Mills met with Dolan during the third quarter and staged the press conference. Mills expressed disappointment in the team he and general manager Scott Perry put together after striking out in their attempts at landing a superstar free agent.
The Knicks followed Mills' press conference by allowing Bulls rookie Coby White to hit seven 3-pointers in the fourth quarter on Tuesday, but New York turned in its best performance Thursday. After enjoying the win, the Knicks hope to avoid the same kind of duds they produced following their prior tastes of success.
"I think we played great basketball," point guard Frank Ntilikina said. "We have to think about how we played (on Thursday) and just bring it and not take a step back on the next game."
Like New York, Charlotte will take the floor coming off some positive results. The Hornets snapped a four-game losing streak by rallying from a 14-point deficit to record a 109-106 home victory over the Detroit Pistons on Friday.
The Hornets, who had lost their previous three games by a combined 15 points, got the win when Malik Monk hit a 3-pointer as time expired.
Monk tied for a team high with 19 points, and he is averaging 18 points in his past three games. Terry Rozier also scored 19 and is averaging 20.8 points and shooting 48.4 percent (31-of-64) in his past four games since shooting 1 of 11 in a 21-point loss to Boston on Nov. 7.
"I think Malik has taken ownership of his play, especially on the offensive end," Charlotte coach James Borrego said. "I think for him, we're seeing signs of real maturity, real growth. He's stuck with it, kept plugging away. Our guys believe in him."
--Field Level Media
