Knicks catch slumping, Joel Emiid-less 76ers at the right time
NY Post
The Knicks are catching Philadelphia at a good time for their NBA equivalent of a doubleheader.
The reeling 76ers have dropped three straight and 15 of their past 21 heading into consecutive games at MSG, including Sunday’s 7 p.m. tipoff on ESPN.
Following Friday’s defeat against the Pelicans — which included a 35-point deficit in the first half — Sixers coach Nick Nurse went off on his team’s “soft approach.”
“You’ve got to play tougher than that. You’ve got to put your nose in there, drive it in the paint, try to get to the foul line, or draw some defense and kick it out to somebody that’s open. So I thought we had a soft mentality on offense,” Nurse said. “We tried to jump shoot our way to a lead early, and you can’t count on that. And then we didn’t execute the defensive schemes. Not a very good combination.”
Their struggles lately coincided with the knee injury to Joel Embiid, the reigning MVP who has no set return date from meniscus surgery and will miss both Garden games.
The status of Tyrese Maxey, who missed the past three games after suffering a concussion, is up in the air for Sunday, but Nurse seemed optimistic about his All-Star’s availability, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Pete Alonso continues to beam about Baltimore, less than two weeks after signing with the Orioles.
The Rivers family certainly gets its money’s worth with a luxury box.
A year ago today, the Knicks were in the midst of a nine-game winning streak, arguably the high-water mark of their regular season.
DK Metcalf’s two-game suspension for his altercation with a fan in Detroit could hit him in more ways than just missing out on the field.
Vincent Trocheck called it an issue of pride, and it was hard for Rangers coach Mike Sullivan to disagree.
The Mets have subtracted a fourth member from their core.
It’s a simple formula, a winning formula:
The Islanders’ injuries have at least made one part of Mathieu Darche’s pending job easier: It’s not hard to discern what his needs are in the trade market.
The Mets–Yankees pipeline remains strong this offseason.
The Chiefs may be down another quarterback.
Draymond Green got tossed again, but this time, he has a point.
Andy Reid isn’t going anywhere.