Knicks fail to lock up No. 3 seed in loss to pesky Pistons
NY Post
DETROIT — Nothing was settled.
The Knicks had a chance to clinch the third seed Thursday and essentially lock in Detroit as a first-round opponent.
Instead, they played it safe with rest days and minutes restrictions and were overwhelmed down the stretch Thursday by the scrappy Pistons, 115-106.
It wasn’t a good omen for a potential playoff preview that the Knicks were the softer side in the final minutes.
“They just out-toughed us. They did. The whole fourth quarter,” said PJ Tucker, the veteran who received rotation minutes for the first time this season. “We kept it close but they just out-toughed us. That’s something we got to address. Obviously, not having OG [Anunoby], not having Josh [Hart], getting those guys back will help a lot.
“I just feel like down in the trenches like that in the playoffs this year, they’re not calling nothing. They’re letting a lot of stuff go right now and I like it. The refs are letting a lot of stuff go both ways. With that happening, guys got to play differently. We got to play different. We got to toughen up. It’s more physical. We got to toughen up.”
PORTLAND, Ore. — Toumani Camara had career highs of nine 3-pointers and 35 points to help Portland beat the Brooklyn Nets 134-99 on Monday night, the Trail Blazers’ largest margin of victory this season.
The Rangers hit the mark with their on-ice ceremony honoring Mika Zibanejad ahead of his 1,000th NHL game Monday night.
PORT ST. LUCIE — For now, Craig Kimbrel is choosing Mets purgatory.
‘Freak of nature: Zion Williamson’s resurgence could pose a Knicks problem versus motivated Pelicans
Zion Williamson is slimmer and healthier for his trip to MSG.
Don’t blame Mikal Bridges for his paltry stats. Blame the role.
Almost a year to the day after a goaltender interference call against Kyle Palmieri lost the Islanders a game against the Blue Jackets that started their season’s death spiral, they were on the wrong end of another controversial call against those same Blue Jackets that might have had the same effect.
On the Queens side of town, the reno began in earnest almost as soon as Francisco Lindor grounded into the 4-6-3 double play. That ended a 4-0 loss before a rare sizable crowd at Miami’s loanDepot Park last Sept. 27, all of them there to witness the final death rattles of an epic baseball calamity.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba is being paid handsomely for his breakout season.
Next comes the harder part. Mostly because it can’t get any easier.
It was Kids Day at Madison Square Garden on Sunday, but for the Rangers, it’s been All About The Kids for months.
PORT ST. LUCIE — From the moment he was told he needed surgery on his left hamate bone, Francisco Lindor fixated on the recovery time. Trainers provided the Mets shortstop a six-week pathway to return to play, and Lindor was determined to hit every marker.
Dylan Garand knew the number off the top of his head. He knew that, between the regular season and playoffs, he’d logged over 160 games with AHL Hartford, and he was right. Before the Rangers recalled him Friday, Garand had served as the Wolf Pack’s goaltender 165 times.
SAN DIEGO — As you may have seen elsewhere in this newspaper (and also if you haven’t deleted me yet from your social media), I have a book coming out Tuesday called “The Bosses of The Bronx.” Much of it details the 37 years’ worth of antics, winning, losing, winning again and overall mania of George Steinbrenner’s time with the Yankees.