After arguably their worst loss of the season Monday, Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek lowered the boom, delivering his most damning assessment of his team’s defensive woes, admitting perhaps this roster is “not capable’’ of playing better defense.
It used to be the Knicks couldn’t beat the winning teams. Now they can’t beat anybody, and Hornacek’s frustration bubbled over after their fifth straight loss — a 115-103 crusher from Orlando at the Garden to drop them into 10th place.
Ten days ago, the Knicks ripped the Magic at the Garden, but that team has gone missing along with its defense. On Monday, the Knicks allowed Orlando to shoot 15-of-31 from the 3-point line.
“I don’t think our guys aren’t trying — maybe they’re not capable,’’ Hornacek said. “I don’t know. That’s what we have to figure out. Maybe play some other guys and mix the lineup somehow.
“We have to find someone to play some defense. You can’t come out at the beginning and their first three baskets are 3s. You have to have better pride than that. … I think they’re trying — they must not be good enough defensively.’’
Hornacek suggested the coaching staff may need to come up with new, tricky schemes to compensate.
“We might figure out ways to trap,’’ Hornacek said. “Coaches are going to have to meet and try to figure it out, defensively, what is going to help us out.’’
The Knicks defense ranks sixth-worst in the NBA, and turned a career reserve Jodie Meeks into James Harden Lite as the Magic (16-20) cruised all night. In losing eight of their last 10, the Knicks have dropped to two games under .500 at 16-18.
Playing on a sore left knee, Carmelo Anthony was sluggish on both ends, continuing a recent slump, and finished with 19 points on 6-of-17 shooting.
Anthony appeared taken aback when he heard Hornacek mentioned the club may not be capable of being better on defense.
“I hope he ain’t giving up — what, 33 games?’’ Anthony said. “I might as well just pack my stuff now — giving up already.’’
Anthony declined further comment.
“I’d rather talk to Jeff about that — see where he’s coming from,’’ he said.
Hornacek also questioned the team’s toughness, bemoaning that the Magic “ripped rebounds’’ out of his players’ hands, and said the club may need to “get in the weight room a little more.’’
“They went and took it from us,’’ Hornacek said. “That’s toughness.’’
Returning from his West Coast sabbatical, team president Phil Jackson was back in his customary eighth-row seat after missing the previous three-game homestand, and what he saw in 2017’s first game must have had him longing for Los Angeles.
Orlando racked up 67 first-half points and 92 after three quarters with the Knicks defense inactive as ever. After the Knicks allowed 21 3s in giving up 129 points to the Rockets on Saturday, the Magic feasted from the 3-point line in the first half, making 8 of 11 3-point shots (72.7 percent).
Meeks made a rare start, and drilled 6 of 7 3-pointers for 23 points. He was averaging 8.3 points on 38 percent shooting entering the night.
The only excuse is the Knicks played their second straight game without Kristaps Porzingis, nursing a sore Achilles tendon. But the Magic were without swingman stud Evan Fournier (heel).
After a soft first half, the Knicks’ defense came out for the third quarter and immediately allowed Aaron Gordon to crank an open 3. Gordon had a big second half to finish with 22 points as the Knicks fell behind by 17 in the third quarter.
“Whatever’s messed up can easily be fixed — it’s fixable,’’ Derrick Rose said, countering Hornacek’s remark.
After Orlando point guard Elfrid Payton drove for a high-arcing banked layup with 7:49 left to put Orlando up 16, the Knicks called a timeout and Brandon Jennings threw the ball high in the air. Hornacek looked exasperated on the sidelines all evening.
On the 3-point defense, Hornacek said the club is “not closing out quick enough” and “helping when you shouldn’t, taking chances.’’
“Our guys were scrambling little bit and we just didn’t get out to them,’’ Hornacek said.
Anthony was 3 of 8 from the field in the first half and two steps behind on defense. Orlando’s Serge Ibaka scored on two straight possessions against Anthony, who lost the former OKC big man inside to allow a layup and then failed to track him at the 3-point line.
“We got to keep working and get back to the basics,’’ Anthony said. “Sometimes — I’ve been in this league a long time — you have to take a step back and go back to the drawing board.’’