Knicks hold on for hard-fought win over Cavaliers in season opener
Knicks forward OG Anunoby goes up for a reverse dunk as Giants running back Cam Skattebo reacts in the background late in the second half of an NBA game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
While the Knicks may have an eye staring longingly at the schedule and holding dates open at Madison Square Garden for what they hope will be a title chase, the focus for a team that promises not to skip a step was on Wednesday night, opening night to the new season.
The hype and excitement of a debut for Mike Brown as head coach and the unveiling of the latest incarnation of the team at Madison Square Garden brought a chance for the first explosion of affection from the fan base since the wild celebrations of last season. But instead, most of the fan base seemed to be wondering just what they were going to see.
The Knicks would like to have only had to plan for how to battle the Cleveland Cavaliers. But instead they were hemming and hawing about injury reports, hidden injuries and bizarre status reports — and the new coach was getting his first taste of life on Broadway.
Still, after the questions were answered and they took the floor, the Knicks started the season with a hard-fought 119-111 win over the Cavaliers. It was not a masterpiece of pace and efficiency, but a promising first step against a team that won 64 games and swept the Knicks in the regular season a year ago.
With the Knicks clinging to a five-point lead in the final two minutes, the Garden got loud with chants of, “Let’s go Knicks.” And when Evan Mobley misfired from three and on the other end, OG Anunoby buried an open corner three, the building finally erupted, a sign of relief on a long day into night.
“Our expectations are extremely high,” Brown said. “We’re not going to get ahead of ourselves. Whether we won or lost, it’s one game. We feel like, as the season goes along, we’re going to get better. We won the game and we had some good moments but we don’t feel like we’re anywhere near what we’re capable of.
“And that’s what makes it exciting. Everybody has expectations. I don’t know if their expectations are higher than anybody in our locker room. So we’re good with that. We embrace that.”
There were the MVP chants for Jalen Brunson, who endured a 5-for-18 shooting night to still finish with 23 points. Karl-Anthony Towns, a question mark up until almost game time, added 19 points and 11 rebounds. Anunoby led with 24 points and 14 rebounds and Mikal Bridges had 16 points as the Knicks used all sorts of lineup combinations to hold on.
The Knicks rested players through the preseason, carefully managed minutes and bumps and bruises. Yet after years of critics moaning about minutes and risk, the Knicks limped into the opener with key pieces Mitchell Robinson and Josh Hart out of action. And, with Towns and Anunoby’s status questionable until almost game time, they were shorthanded from Day One, and maybe more important, with little clarity as to when they might be whole again.
“As a head coach you want all your guys all the time,” Brown said before the game, trying to carefully navigate the delicate path of injury reports with the Knicks.
“You want to be greedy in that regard. And we, starting with me, I’m a big next man up, next player up. It doesn’t matter how many people are out. You’re hoping it’s not a ton, but that’s what all these guys get paid to do. They get paid to be ready to play whenever their number is called.”
Those words seemed hollow until the game began and by the start of the second period, Brown had already put 11 players into action. And not sure what the odds were on Trey Jemison getting more playing time in the first quarter of the season than Towns, but that’s where we were.
With a 17-point lead squandered and the Knicks trailing by two early in the fourth quarter, the Knicks embarked on a 14-0 run early in the fourth with a mix of Towns, Anunoby, Deuce McBride, Tyler Kolek and Jordan Clarkson on the floor.
In the end, it was the two players whose status was in question who delivered the most with Towns still shaking his head afterward that he’d even gotten on the floor.
“Yeah, it’s been a day for me living in it and for y’all trying to report it,” Towns said.
“It’s been one hell of a day. But I’m glad in the end God’s good, we got a win, New York is happy, the fans are happy. I think it’s a great day.
“I’ve been banged up and haven’t really gotten a chance to practice or play in those last two preseason games. I didn’t want to disappoint the fans, dealing with a Grade 2 quad strain. You know, It’s not something that’s easy to deal with.
“We made it happen tonight. I thought the fans respected the effort I put in to play tonight and my teammates did, too. So shout out to them for supporting me and understanding the situation I was in.”
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
