Knicks Bulletin: ‘All 82 ain’t going to go perfect’

Black night in the annals of the franchise.

No need to sugarcoat the humiliation the Knicks suffered at the hands of the Thunder on Friday, dropping their second and last meeting with Oklahoma City 126-101 in New York.

The Knicks trounce minnows and can’t hit a bucket to save their collective life against contenders. It is what it is, and unless things take a 180-degree turn from now to May this New York team is nothing but guaranteed to go down in flames in the playoffs.

Here’s what Coach Thibs, a few Knickerbockers, and a few Bolts said before and after Friday’s farce.

Tom Thibodeau

On what went wrong against the Thunder.

“The way the game started—we actually started off OK defensively but we missed some wide-open shots and then our intensity went away.

“We didn’t play with the discipline that is necessary in terms of they collapse, they do a good job in the paint and you’ve got to make the right reads. We didn’t do that. It’s hard.

“Sometimes you’re flat, and we’ve got to get out of that. You’ve got to come with more intensity, got to have more second-, third-, fourth-effort-type plays. Usually that’s what gets you going. You get some hustle plays and then you find a rhythm.

“But we didn’t take anything away. They got what they wanted.”

On the foul discrepancies against Towns.

“(You mean) like attacking the rim, and there’s a straight line drive, and there’s force, and he’s getting hit? I think that’s what you’re saying, right? I would agree.”

Karl-Anthony Towns

On not caring about what the rest of the league is doing.

“I ain’t worried about them teams, I’m worried about us. We gotta worry about the New York Knicks.

“When we do what we do and we’re constantly chasing perfection, we’re chasing improvement every day, we’ll be the best version of ourselves when we need to be against those teams.

“Just stay focused on us, stay focused on daily improvement.”

On the ups and downs of a long season.

“All 82 ain’t going to go perfect.

“I can tell you there’s going to be a lot of times we don’t look like the team that we were 4 weeks ago and we’re going to remind everyone a week later and then we’re going to be a whole other version 3 weeks from then.”

Jalen Brunson

On facing challenges and responding to them (before Friday’s game).

“I know people don’t want to hear this, but this is a test of who we are and how we’re going to respond.

“We’re obviously not doing our best, ball’s not going in. We’re just a step late. It’s not an excuse, but how are we going to respond as a team? I don’t want to say it’s a good test for us but it will show us where we are.”

On the loss to the Thunder.

“A terrible game.”

On failing to deliver against OKC.

“Gotta give them a lot of credit. The way they played—from their point of view—very well and, I mean, we just did not come to play Knicks basketball today.”

On what “Knicks Basketball” means to him.

“It means a lot to me. And it means something in this locker room. And we’re gonna hold that to our heart.”

On bouncing back from Friday’s loss after dropping four of their last five games.

“Tonight we did the wrong things and failed. Every single day we have to keep building and keep chipping away. Just not lose faith, not lose confidence.

“Yeah, tonight sucked. That’s plain and simple. Tomorrow we wake up, we watch film and get better.”

Josh Hart

On the recent team struggles.

“When the shots aren’t falling, that means you’ve got to get stops. We didn’t get stops. We didn’t get out in transition. We didn’t play fast. We didn’t make shots.

“We didn’t do really anything we were supposed to do.”

On the journey to find the team’s potential.

“I think at the end of the day we have to go out there and execute at a high level; we have to go out there with energy, we have to go out there with no egos. We have to go out there with no individual agendas. We have to go out there and sacrifice. I think that’s the biggest thing.

“We’re a new group. We’re still learning, figuring it out, but we can’t expect to just have talent and go out there and win games. We’ve got to lock in and compete.”

On why Towns is getting called for more fouls than he’s receiving.

“I don’t know. That’s for y’all to highlight and draw attention to.

“I feel like sometimes he does get fouled. JB gets fouled, too. But at the end of the day, we’ve gotta make sure we shut up and let the refs ref and let them do their jobs and continue to hoop.

“That’s for y’all to draw attention to, and hopefully maybe something will change.”

On what went wrong against the Thunder.

“I felt like we didn’t do what we were supposed to do. Whether that was energy, attention to detail, focus, whatever it was, we didn’t do it. We’ve got to build from it, we’ve got to learn from it. We’ve got to grow up and figure it out.”

On the Knicks’ poor performances against the best teams in the league.

“I think at the end of the day we have to go out there and execute at a high level; we have to go out there with energy, we have to go out there with no egos. We have to go out there with no individual agendas. We have to go out there and sacrifice. I think that’s the biggest thing.”

Mikal Bridges

On getting booed at MSG on Friday.

“I get it. The missing shots, that’s something you really can’t control. Just keep making them, keep getting them up.

“But defensively—a lot of miscues, lack of communication, which is very boo-worthy.”

On his 0-for-9 shooting performance against the Thunder.

“I just gotta make them.

“I think I’m just short on a lot of them probably these past couple games. I just gotta put a little more lift probably on it.”

On Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s cooking of the Knicks.

“He’s crafty. Real crafty. Just real slithery, that’s all we say about him. Like, he just get around you and it’s tough.”

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder Player)

On Madison Square Garden.

“Madison Square Garden, besides Paycom, it’s probably the best arena in the NBA. There’s an aura.

“The fans are very engaged in the game. There’s oohs, there’s aahs. I think the city as a whole, New York just loves basketball. You can feel that out there.”

Isaiah Hartenstein (Oklahoma City Thunder Player)

On leaving the Knicks and their roster moves.

“I think Leon (Rose) did a good job of navigating the situation. When I left, he got an All-Star center—he has been doing a great job of finding the right pieces.

“I think it’s definitely a good move (for him and the Knicks). They just came off a nine-game winning streak before they played us [last week]. I think he does a good job of finding players that can play for [head coach Tom Thibodeau] and thrive under [him].”

On his adaptable playing style.

“I’m team-first regardless of where I go to. I adapt [to] my role in every situation.

“The first year I came here [to New York], I had to change how I play. So, I kind of adapted to that. Put my team first. Later on, I got to play my game a little more. But when I first got here, I had to adjust it.

“To me, it’s always the team first. Putting winning in front of everything.”

On his best memory from his stint with the New York Knicks.

“My first playoff game at The Garden, that was the first time where I felt when someone would say, ‘you feel the energy.’”