Knicks point guard Immanuel Quickley checked in to Friday’s game with four minutes to go in the third. His team trailed the Heat by 18. They’d missed 10 of their first 15 shots out of halftime. They’d given up five offensive rebounds and turned it over three times.
If you thought the game was over when Quickley checked in, you certainly weren’t alone. Many in the sold-out Madison Square Garden crowd felt the same way.
But then Quickley started knocking down shots, pushing the ball and chipping away at Miami’s lead.
There were many heroes for the Knicks in their improbable comeback on Friday night. Jalen Brunson made big shots late, RJ Barrett was clutch on both ends of the floor. But the Knicks don’t have a chance to win the game without Quickley.
He scored 14 of his 20 points in the final 16 minutes. Each basket seemed to break the Heat a little more.
“Immanuel Quickley came in and really changed the game. I don’t know how much he [Quickley] had in that third and fourth quarter, but he really changed the game,” Kyle Lowry said afterward. “His aggressiveness, his assertiveness.”
Quickley was aggressive from the moment he stepped on the floor. He acknowledged after the game that the deficit surprised him. But it didn’t change his approach.
“It’s a decision to mentally check out or not. It’s a decision to keep fighting. It’s a decision to tell yourself you got to keep fighting no matter what,” he said.
Quickley had eight points in the first seven minutes of the fourth. His last basket got the Knicks within six with 5:12 to play. Brunson and RJ Barrett then combined to score New York’s last 13 points to complete the comeback.
After the remarkable win, Knick players and coach Tom Thibodeau referenced the Knicks’ resilience
“They have belief in each other. They’re fighters. And they’re not gonna go away easily,” Thibodeau said. “So sometimes it goes our way — and never know when it changes. So, they hit us pretty hard to start the third, but we responded. We hit back. And then the result ended up being positive for us.”
The result is much different without strong play from Quickley. The fourth-year guard has been one of the Knicks best players early on this season. In doing so, he’s increased the chances that he earns a significant offer in restricted free agency this summer.
BRUNSON SHOULDER
Brunson hurt his right shoulder late in the fourth quarter, after he took a hard knock on a foul while hitting a shot in the paint. He stayed down for a minute and was in obvious pain, but he got up and scored again on the next play.
Shortly thereafter, he got separation on a drive and hit a 20-foot step-back. Brunson did all of this while in obvious pain. He said afterward that his shoulder hurt in the moment but he was ‘OK’ after the game. The shoulder is certainly something to monitor.
IN-SEASON SCENARIOS
The Knicks improved to 2-1 in group play for the in-season tournament. The Heat are also 2-1 and the Bucks are 3-0.
The Knicks finish the group play stage against Charlotte on Tuesday. The Heat and Bucks also play on Tuesday.
If the Knicks win, they will either win the group based on point differential or qualify for the quarterfinal round as a wild card. If they lose and the Heat win, they will be eliminated. If the Knicks lose and the Heat lose, the Knicks would be eliminated if either the Celtics, Nets and Cavs win.
RANDLE ON TURNOVERS
Julius Randle had 13 points, eight rebounds and a team-high seven assists against Miami. But he also had six turnovers, which hurt the Knicks in the first half. In 15 second-half minutes, Randle did not turn the ball over.
‘For me personally it was just playing off one foot. I have to get back to playing off two feet,’ Randle said afterward.
