Last-Minute News, Rumors, Reports before New York Knicks Brooklyn Nets Rivalry Game

The New York Knicks are the defending champions, but now they're also 2-4, and tonight a man who spent five years bringing respectability back to the New York Knicks enters Madison Square Garden in the jersey of a rival team, as Julius Randle and the Brooklyn Nets are at the Garden at 7.30 Eastern Standard, and I'm going to show you why the Knicks get back on track tonight. The Nets have lost to this team 14 straight times, Jalen Brunson and Carl Anthony Towns are producing, and Tyler Kolek has been the best surprise of the season. We know Randall wants to beat the Knicks, and Randall also did speak out on this team, discussing everything he feels towards the Knicks now that he is back in New York. But first, let's think about what these two teams look like right now. One is the reigning champion that's now starting over in a new season, and the other is a rebuilding group that just got its first win on Sunday. On paper, this should not be a close game. The Knicks haven't lost to Brooklyn since January 8th of 2023. Last season, they beat the Nets 134-198 in November, then 120-66 in January, a 54-point win, the biggest in the history of this rivalry. So here's the case, and it starts with the man that is coming home in Julius Randle. Now the Knicks, they still are one of the best contenders in the NBA, just because they're 2-4. That doesn't change anything. And right now, on Calsi, They have a 7% chance to win the 2027 NBA Finals, going back to back and being the first team to do it since the Golden State Warriors did with the super team that they had. And guys, right now the Knicks have a 7% chance on Cal State to do that. And if you trade $25, You can get $335 of a max payout. And I do want to thank Calci for sponsoring today's video because on Calci, you are trading directly against other users, not the house like traditional sportsbooks. You're buying yes or no contracts on the outcomes of events across sports, politics, and even the weather. For example, the Knicks winning that championship where you can get that great payout for. And guys, if you are interested in trying out Cal Sheet, make sure to click the link in our description down below. It's also in our pinned comment and sign up for Cal Sheet using code DIGESTNBA and you can trade $25 and get $55 when you do trade that first $25. It's a great deal for you. It helps the channel out as well. But getting back into the video here. Let's start with Julius Randle, because he played five seasons for the Knicks. In September, when the Nets opened camp, he said, quote, I spent five years here. My family has grown here. And on the Knicks winning the title, he said, quote, that he was just happy for those guys. He also said, being back, I have a greater appreciation for it. I'm extremely happy basketball-wise, and that his oldest son is back at his old school. Shout out Kyden Randle forever. Asked this week if last season's blowouts came up, he said, I don't know anything about it, to be honest. I live in the present, baby. And playing on the garden, he said, sure, it'll be a lot of fun. And he's had a real impact. He's averaging 21 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 5.2 assists. And on Sunday, he had 20 points, 6 assists, and 5 rebounds in Brooklyn's first win of the season, 98-90. over Indiana, which is always still good to see King Julius still beating up on the Pacers. Now, De'Ron Sharp also had a very good game, having 15 points and 13 rebounds against Indiana. And Coach Jordy Fernandez, who was Mike Brown's former assistant coach at Sacramento when Brown won coach of the year there, said, we don't win this game without him. Nolan Charor, a rookie guard, and who's not a rookie, a second year guard, I should say, added 16 points and six assists. So the Nets showed a pulse on Sunday for the first time, which is Why I'm not writing a blowout here, they held Indiana at a 41.1% shooting, their best defensive night, but they're on the second night of a back-to-back and they'll walk into a loud building against a team that really wants this win. So no, he isn't coming in angry, he's coming in happy, which tells me the Knicks have nothing to fear emotionally from Julius that he's going to be playing angry, but also a calmer Julius Randle has typically been the guy who has had a lot more success, especially when When it comes to his ability to shoot the three point shot, which for For the beginning of his season, has gone pretty well. But look at the rest of the Nets. They're 1-5. They score 110.2 points a game and give up 121.1. Their offensive rating is a 105.6, which is 28th in the league. Michael Porter Jr. is a real threat here. 20.8 points and 41% from three. And he told reporters, last year we went to the Garden, it was not pretty. And that is the understatement of the century. And guys, honestly, look, I know Julius wants to come back and have some sort of a revenge game. Of course he does. Why would he not? The Knicks traded him away after he did a lot for them. Randle was understandably upset at the trade. So was Dante DiVincenzo. They both felt like they got screwed out of something when they were building something special, and then all of a sudden, the Knicks switched up on them. And it was shocking to me. If you guys were fans of the channel back then, you would know that I was very much against the idea of the Julius Randle D'Vincenzo for cat trade. I thought Cat was overrated. I didn't think he was going to be helpful towards the team winning. I didn't think he had a big impact on winning. I was dead wrong. Obviously, that trade has aged phenomenally. I'm thrilled it happened. I was completely and utterly wrong. I really underestimated the ability of Karl-Anthony Townsend, every sense of the word. And this trade did make sense after all is said and done. Obviously, though, I think it is one of those situations where we do look at Randall, and I think most of us look at him with nothing but appreciation and love. I mean, there's a man that carried the Knicks back to the playoffs for the first time in a seven-year drought. The last time the Knicks lost to the Brooklyn Nets, Randall was part of the team, and I was in college. It's been a while. Even so now, the last time Randall suited up for the Knicks was on January 30th against the Miami Heat in 2024. He went down with a shoulder dislocation and never played for the Knicks again. It was an unceremonious end to what was a ceremonious Knicks career. And I do hope that the fans give him a good hand. And Randall, he can say what he wants, but we all know how he plays. We all know how competitive he is coming from that tree of Kobe. We know that he's going to want to win this game. He's going to want to come in. Understand this rivalry, because he used to be on the other side of it. Now, he is on... The Nets side, the side with very little fan base, but the difference is he's on the side that is the worst team, just like it was for a large portion of his Knicks career compared to the Nets. Julius would always go balls to the wall against the Nets. He would go crazy. He would have great games. He would be a beast. But the problem was the Nets were stacked up and they would usually beat the Knicks. And no, not Noah Clowney, excuse me. We obviously saw A whole lot of jokes surrounding that. Nicholas Claxton saying he had never lost to the Knicks, then never beat the Knicks again after that, which was obviously quite funny. That's actually still the case as well, because the Knicks did beat the Bulls this year. But this game does matter, and there is going to be a lot of emotion in this game. Now when we look at the Knicks, yes, they are 2-4, but let's look at how. They lost to Philadelphia, Boston, and Orlando by a combined 19 points. Mike Brown feels like, quote, you're starting all over, and quote, it's like climbing a mountain, and... Reason one is Jalen Brunson. He scored 38 points on 52% shooting in Chicago and then 24 points in six assists in Philadelphia. He had the third 90 seconds left to give the Knicks their only lead since the first quarter. And I just want to be clear about something. Brunson shot 36.4% in Philadelphia. So it's not that he's back to his best. He's still getting it going. He's still ramping it up. He always starts at the slowest and gets better and better as the year goes along. It's just how he operates. It's the volume and the playmaking that are there. The efficiency is going to come. Against this defense, He will find it. And over six games, he's at 153 points, 25.5 a game. That shot is coming back, and he's going to be just fine. While reason two is Karl-Anthony Towns. He's averaging 21.8 points on 57.5% shooting and 41.4% from three, and he's scored at least 19 points in all six games. In Philadelphia, he had 22 points, 12 rebounds, and a season low. Two turnovers. One more history lesson. The last time these teams met on March 20th in Brooklyn, the Knicks won 93-92 after blowing a double-digit fourth quarter lead. Towns had 26 points and 15 rebounds. Brunson had 17 and OG had 16. So the Nets can hang around and the Knicks have to finish. We know these things. That's one thing that I'm watching. Not whether the Knicks are better, but whether they play better for 48 minutes, which is something they've been really bad at this year. And reason three is the matchup. A team that allows 121 points per game and has a bottom three offense, On the second night of a back-to-back, walking into the Garden, that is a bunch of problems for them and none for us. And reason four is Mikhail Bridges, who has been under fire, who's finding his touch. Mikhail Bridges had a season-high five baskets in Philadelphia, plus three steals, and a team-high five deflections. And one of you, Chris Ferroni, 1981, wrote, I wouldn't say the Knicks are back yet. It's still early, though, and I think they can turn it around. But I won't say they are back until they are more consistent. That's fair, and I feel like tonight is a great chance for that consistency to really start. Also, real quick, guys, make sure to go and like this video and subscribe to the channel. It really does help us out, and we're trying to get to 30K before this year ends. But on to Tyler Kolek, who's been the best surprise of this season, without a doubt. In his first three games, he had 21 assists and zero turnovers in 44 minutes. And Tommy Beer reported that's the only time in the last 40 years that a player has done that. In Chicago, he had nine points, nine assists, and 18 minutes on three for four from three. The Knicks are plus 13 with him on the floor. He's the real deal now. He is breaking out. Now, Philadelphia was his first bad night. Two points, four assists, and his first two turnovers of the season in 13 minutes of action against pressure from a Sixers defense. Over four games, he's had 25 assists and two turnovers in 57 minutes. Yahoo Sports reported this week that the Knicks are giving the ball away more than they did last season, and that Mike Brown blames an urge to force big plays. The point guard doesn't turn it over, matters more because of that, and Kolick doesn't. That's one bad night against a team that was blitzing him. Tonight, he's up against a defense that gives up the 26th most threes in the league. So, I like him again. If Jose Alvarado, who's questionable with the ankle sprain, doesn't take his minutes, and even so, I think we will see some Tyler Kolick action regardless of this. And one of you, JW-YV2EX, did right. We need scoring off the bench really, really bad. He's right there playmaking, and Jordan Clarkson also right there can be that cure, even though obviously Clarkson has switched his style up a little bit. We do have a whole video coming out on that as well and the positive impact that that has. Now, just taking a look at the rest of this picture on the ankle injury report for Alvarado, he's still questionable right now with that sprain. For Brooklyn, Igor Joman has a right leg bone bruise, and rookie Mikael Brown Jr., who has a minutes limit, sat Sunday and is expected to play today. The Knicks right now, I would easily, easily, easily expect them to win. I'm pretty sure everyone is going to agree that they're going to win, and I'll say this as a fan. The Knicks are 1-5 against the spread, so having a 14.5 spread on a lot of sportsbooks tonight is certainly a lot, but I'll take the champs to win because they've beaten this team by 54 points and by 36 in the last 12 months. So here are three keys to victory that I have. One, protect the ball and punish Brooklyn's turnovers in transition. The Knicks have to flip the script and be the team that's winning off of turnovers, not allowing teams to score points off turnovers and then losing. Two, Towns gets a post touch in the first five minutes because that sets the whole offense, and I know he's working well at the high post, but also, the Knicks have to unlock Carl Anthony Towns and let him score the ball because he's so good against it and De'Ron Sharp is a little bit undersized. Now, outside of that, three, we need Brunson. He needs to take what the defense gives him. Let Kolek and the bench carry the middle of the game. Don't play ISO ball. Mike Brown said there's too much ISO ball. Let's not get the Brunson ball going. As much as it does work at the ends of games, I don't like when it happens the full game. It becomes predictable, and that kind of style is just too exhausting for any player to do all game, and then the efficiency will drop as the game goes on, and with Brunson, a guy who's always best in the fourth quarter, We do want the Knicks to play that passing style, the flex offense style a lot, and also just run the game and do other players. Towns is good. OG can create. Get McHale going. It honestly can work just fine. If I had to make the prediction right now, which I'm going to do, I'm taking the Knicks 118 and the Nets 101. I'm going to say Brunson gets 28 points, Towns gets 24, and Tyler Kolek has another great game with eight assists because I'm expecting him to play regardless. I'm also going to expect Randle does get a nice ovation and also that he does play pretty well even with OG on a no-be draped all over him. Randle is just a very good player still, and I'm always going to root for Julius Randle to have as much success as possible. Now, guys, here's the thing. Should we be worried about the Knicks having a 2-4 start? No. If they lose to the Nets tonight, should we be worried about them 2-5? Yeah, I think it's time to kind of freak out and wonder, alright, I know they'll figure it out, but what the hell is going on here? Let's stop having Jalen Brunson make appearances everywhere like he's doing for SNY and for Harry Styles' final night of his long residency at MSG where he made millions and millions and millions of dollars for having JB show up to stuff like that. I get it. He's such a big name. He's a celebrity as much as he is a basketball player right now. But then would be time to really be like, all right, let's lock in a little bit because I do think that stuff gets overblown. But if we lose to the Nets, then I'm going to kind of be a little bit stressed out. Now, before I go, I do want to shout out the comment of the day, Odalis Spingolo on our Sixers preview who said, Wake up, you guys are champs. That's what the whole building needs to feel tonight. And I think they will. I think they understand. It's like, all right, let's kind of let's get going now. It's been a couple weeks. Let's lock in. And tell me in the comments, do you guys think the Knicks win? Make a prediction down below, and if you do get it right, you will get a shout-out, and I'll find some sort of gift to give you. I don't know what it is, but I'll give you something. Guys, like this video, subscribe, turn on post notifications. Have a wonderful, wonderful day, guys, and go Knicks.