Defensively, the Knicks couldn’t stifle a sneeze inside.
Offensively, they relied on Carmelo Anthony far too much. And when they weren’t doing that, they were relying on Carmelo Anthony far too much.
See a pattern?
“Anytime guys are not making shots, a lot of them was wide open, so when we’re not making shots who else is there to look to to make shots?” Anthony said with irrefutable logic. “I don’t look at it as putting too much on me.”
So the pattern ran its course Sunday — as did another pattern for the Knicks this season, losing. Surrendering 54 points in the paint, the Knicks suffered their 14th defeat in 17 games, a 98-81 spanking by the Heat that forced the Garden fans to chant, “Let’s Go Heat” several times, including near the very end.
“Yeah,” Anthony, a 25-point scorer, said when asked if he was annoyed by the chant. “You’re home, you don’t want to hear that. I’m assuming they were all Miami Heat fans. I want to believe that. I want to think that. I don’t want to think it was New York Knicks fans. I was surprised, very surprised.”
It wasn’t too surprising the Heat won, though, as Joe Johnson (12 points), waived by the Nets late last week and signed by Miami on Saturday, not only debuted but started. The game quickly developed that recurring pattern: Miami went up big, the Knicks rallied, Miami went up big again, usually with Dwyane Wade (26 points) leading the way.
The first quarter saw the Knicks down 11 before ending the session within four. The second quarter contained a 16-point Miami edge, but the Knicks only trailed by five at the half. And Miami rebuilt its lead to 13 in the third quarter before the fourth quarter began with the Knicks down four points, 69-65. And the fourth was a lopsided mess.
Interim coach Kurt Rambis said the plan was to keep the Heat from controlling the paint and stopping penetration.
“Clearly we didn’t do a good job of that tonight,” Rambis said.
And they weren’t too swell in rebounding, either as Miami mauled them off the glass, 54-39.
Rambis simply stressed the Knicks are counting on Anthony far too much.
“We start relying on Carmelo too much. We don’t have to do that,” Rambis said. “It is too much pressure on him.
So bad offense. Bad defense, Bad rebounding. Other than that, solid.
“We have to move the ball a little more,” said center Robin Lopez (14 points, 14 rebounds). “As a team, we have to have more faith in ourselves. There are a lot of possessions where we are giving the ball to Melo and looking at him and hoping he can make something happen.”
Anthony, who was given a rest day at practice Saturday, had additional pressure because the Knicks were without No. 3 scorer Arron Afflalo (thigh). Plus, Kristaps Porzingis shot poorly (4-of-13) and scored nine points. Anthony played over 41 minutes but waved off chances to rest.
“We just kind of judged it by the game and as the game goes on how I feel out there. If I have my legs, if I don’t,” Anthony said of the hefty minutes. “If I’m tired, if I’m not. During that [fourth quarter] moment we were making a run, making a push, he asked me if I was OK to stay in the game. I said yeah, I felt good to stay in the game. Then that eight-minute timeout was where I told him just give me a couple of minutes. They made some plays during that time.”
And Porzingis, Rambis said, did not look comfortable.
“I was just missing a lot,” Porzingis said. “I couldn’t find my rhythm and that was the tough part about his game. I was missing and my teammates couldn’t find their rhythm and we just all were searching for that rhythm.”
Lance Thomas, trying to make up for some of the offense lost to in Afflalo’s absence, scored 12 points in the loss. Langston Galloway (seven points) started for Afflalo. Hassan Whiteside had 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for a Heat double-double. Miami’s prize rookie, Justise Winslow, collected 13 rebounds. Luol Deng added 15 Miami points.