The New York Knicks, led by Tim Hardaway Jr. and David Fizdale, earned their first victory in the season opener against the Atlanta Hawks.
- New York Knicks 126 (1-0)
- Atlanta Hawks 107 (0-1)
- NBA, East, Final, Box Score
- Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
Forget skill, Forget talent. Forget any type of dominant basketball attribute fans salivate over these days. None of it matters if the prideful aspects of individuals don’t help the team.
On Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden, the New York Knicks showcased a squad that displayed every prideful attribute basketball offers.
Defense, hustle, smarts, grittiness—if David Fizdale’s squad plays like this, forget the win total. The city will fall in love with this club. And yeah, defeating the Atlanta Hawks by the final of 126-107 does help as well.
It was a franchise-breaking 49-point outburst in the second quarter that really put the game away.
Tim Hardaway Jr. poured in 22 first-half points and 31 for the game on 10-of-22 from the floor. He was excellent shooting the ball, but it was much more than that.
??? pic.twitter.com/xT2uELKdxX
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) October 18, 2018
.@T_HardJR takin' it ? pic.twitter.com/nZjCs0jlXz
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) October 18, 2018
Not everything was in good fun. Early on, nerves got the better of the starting five as it felt like the entire MSG crowd needed to spur on the team to relax and play ball.
Eventually, they did and it started with defense. Frank Ntilikina, who started at small forward, didn’t make a tremendous impact in the box score yet played extremely well. He finished with five points, five boards and three assists.
.@FrankLikina drip drip ? pic.twitter.com/uOwRdPP0NF
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) October 17, 2018
??? froze him. pic.twitter.com/lA2Tmz54cJ
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) October 18, 2018
Finishing as runner-up to Timmy in the box score was Enes Kanter who poured in 16 on 5-of-9 shooting while leading the squad with 11 boards. Trey Burke, Mario Hezonja and young Allonzo Trier all finished with 15.
Speaking of Trier, he absolutely put forth the highlight of the night while slashing down the lane.
Flex on 'em, rook. pic.twitter.com/aZy7w37Zz5
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) October 18, 2018
For Atlanta, Taurean Prince led the way with a team-high 21 points. Rookie Trae Young struggled from the floor, finishing 5-for-14 for 14 points.
David Fizdale is suddenly 1-0 with his new team. Next up will be the rival Brooklyn Nets at the Barclays Center on Friday night.
Coach approved ✅ pic.twitter.com/Y5cB3XGoFA
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) October 18, 2018
Welcome to @TheGarden, Coach. pic.twitter.com/5cfa018rJH
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) October 18, 2018
