Category: Basketball

Why are the Knicks 0-3? 

From head coach Mike Brown’s perspective, it’s mostly a combination of the following: 

1. Missing quality shot attempts 

2. Not enough physicality/pace on either side of the ball 

3. A lethal combination of careless turnovers and poor transition defense.   

There are many other reasons why the defending champs are 0-3. But those three are the most glaring – and fixable – issues Brown sees at the moment.   

During shootaround on Sunday morning, Brown talked to his players about each of the three issues listed above. He hit on them again before Sunday night’s game against Orlando.   

“We're not quite there yet,” Brown said late Sunday night, shortly after New York fell to 0-3 in a loss to Orlando.   

The good news for the Knicks? They believe the issues at hand are fixable. (Also, they won the NBA title last year and will have a well-earned grace period with fans/media. Imagine if the Knicks started 0-3 last year? It would have been total chaos.)   

Jalen Brunson says the lack of crisp cuts/actions on offense is on him.   

“Organization on my part and making sure we’re in the right place to execute what we need to do; everything falls on my shoulders,” Brunson said late Sunday. “I just got to be a better leader in making sure our guys are ready to go and are in the right spots. There are a lot of little things but that’s the main thing. Organization on my part.”   

Turnovers (16 against Orlando, 49 over the first three games) and poor transition defense (Orlando, missing Paolo Banchero to injury, had 23 points off turnovers on Sunday) hurt New York against the Magic. The Knicks, by Brown’s count, also lost five of six 50-50 balls (loose balls where the ball can be corralled by either team) in the fourth quarter.   

“That’s hard to overcome,” the coach said.   

Of course, the Knicks aren't going to go 0-82 this season. They will win plenty of games. But losing to a Magic team missing Banchero is not ideal -- no matter what time of year it is.

Brunson has said several times this season that the first two weeks or so of the year will reveal a lot about this Knicks team. Every opponent will get up for games against the defending champs (particularly at the Garden).   

And then there’s the championship hangover.   

“Everyone has been telling us what a great job we did, how fun it was, what we did for the city, the constant praise (for winning the title),” the Knicks captain said. “So now we need the opposite.”   

Fortunately for Brunson and the Knicks, “the opposite” is never hard to find in this town.

BENCH ROLES UP FOR GRABS

Andre Drummond played just seven minutes against the Magic – the same amount as third string center James Wiseman.   

Wiseman also played a couple of minutes in place of Drummond on Friday against Boston.

Brown says Drummond will be the Knicks’ backup center on Tuesday against Detroit. But the coach also made it clear that all rotation spots off the bench are up for grabs.   

“We have our starting five. Other than that, anybody can play,” Brown said before tipoff on Sunday. “When you’re a backup in this league, that doesn’t mean you’re always gonna be the seventh man or you’re always gonna be the eighth man. No, no, no, no, no, no. It’s competitive. And it’s less so with the starting group if your starting group is established, which ours is, but everybody else after that starting five, I can throw in front of the next guy in a heartbeat.” 

Brown was responding to a question about Wiseman playing against the Celtics. He then referenced the Knicks’ standards, which are spelled out in a document signed by all staffers.

“We will make sure that everybody embraces it, not just accepts it,” Brown said.   

KNECHT-ING IN WESTCHESTER

New two-way player Dalton Knecht will initially spend time with the Knicks’ G League club, the Westchester Knicks. The thinking is that Knecht will have ample opportunity to play in G League games. Knecht will certainly garner consideration to play in NBA games with the Knicks. But Brown and the organization want Knecht, an ex-Laker, to get acclimated. 

“We want him to play as much as he can,” Brown said of Knecht, a 2024 first-round pick.   

To make room for Knecht, the Lakers’ first-round pick in 2024, the Knicks waived two-way player Kevin McCullar Jr. McCullar Jr. was beginning his third year with the Knicks this season. 

“Kevin, first of all, he's a fantastic young man and we're gonna miss him, obviously,” Brown said. “But he's been here (two years; three including this season) as a two-way player so we have a pretty good feel for him. He has a good feel for us and you know being able to try to get to know a guy like Dalton Knecht at this point of the year, it's something that we need to take a look at.

“So (getting waived) wasn't anything that Kevin didn't do. He was great and he is an NBA player and I think he's gonna get a shot someday; and it could be with us –  who knows -- down the road. But (the decision to waive McCullar Jr.) was more so having the opportunity to bring a guy like Dalton on just to get to know him a little bit better.”

Instead of Sunday being a tale of two halves, the Lakers’ win over the Jazz felt more like a tale of four quarters. Or, more specifically, one quarter vs. three quarters.

The first quarter is going to rank up there with one of the worst LA plays this season. The Jazz shot unsustainably well, as we would see, they also were just outworking the Lakers, too.

They had a staggering 24-4 advantage in points in the paint. They had 16 second-chance points on six offensive rebounds. Everything they did seemed to work.

The benefit of having a superstar, though, is that they can paper over your shortcomings on any given night. And from the second quarter on, it was Luka Dončić’s world with Austin Reaves playing an overqualified Robin.

They still struggled rebounding. They still lost the battle in the paint. But they hit 11 more threes and six more free throws over the final three frames to overcome that.

The end result was a gritty win that leaves the team with much to work on, but they get to do it in higher spirits.

So, let’s dive into the win. As always, grades are based on expectations for each player. A “B” grade represents the average performance for that player.

Matisse Thybulle

25 minutes, 11 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 3 steals, 1 block, 1 foul, 4-8 FG, 3-7 3PT, +12

As uncertain as I remain about the long-term viability of starting both Thybulle and Williams, if they’re going to play and shoot like this, then it’s hard to also argue for going away from it. They offer the Lakers the chance to cross match on defense, which can also lead to confusion on the other end as well.

Grade: B+

Ziaire Williams

30 minutes, 11 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 2 fouls, 3-9 FG, 3-7 3PT, 2-2 FT, +11

There are still a few too many times when he goes to the rim without much of an idea of what to do and hopes his athleticism can bail him out. But he’s shooting the ball well and is an active defender. He really seems to have solidified his spot in this lineup.

Grade: B+

Walker Kessler

28 minutes, 2 points, 7 rebounds, 1 block, 4 fouls, 1 turnover, 1-2 FG, +2

After the game, he admitted that he let his emotions get the best of him and it impacted his play. It showed, because he was a relative non-factor in this one. Considering the circumstances, and the way he played in the first two games, we’ll give him the benefit of the doubt.

Grade: D

Austin Reaves

35 minutes, 29 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 5 fouls, 3 turnovers, +14

Reaves will be a bit of an unsung hero in this one for about 52 reasons, but his second quarter was as important as any stretch of this game. He had 15 points on 4-5 shooting from the field while making all four of his free throws and pulled the Lakers back into the game.

Grade: A

Luka Dončić

38 minutes, 52 points, 8 rebounds, 10 assists, 2 steals, 4 turnovers, 17-30 FG, 8-18 3PT, 10-11 FT, +3

Fresh off one of his worst games as a Laker, he has one of his best. He pretty much epitomized the Lakers overall in this game. He started the game 3-8 from the field and 0-5 from three, meaning he hit 14 of his final 22 shots and eight of his final 13 threes.

A special, special night.

Grade: A+

Quentin Grimes

20 minutes, 3 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 2 fouls, 1-2 FG, 0-1 3PT, -8

After a couple of strong games to open the season, Grimes wasn’t as productive on Sunday. The benefit of having a deep team is that they don’t need to rely on him if he’s struggling.

Grade: C-

Sandro Mamukelashvili

20 minutes, 9 points, 3 rebounds, 2-4 FG, 1-2 3PT, 4-6 FT, -3

The Lakers have gone to lineups fairly often with Mamu at the five with Looney really struggling. It’s not his best option against most opponents, but it seems they’re going to have to make do. It was nice to see him get to the line for six free throws.

Grade: B-

Collin Sexton

20 minutes, 13 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 fouls, 2 turnovers, 5-11 FG, 1-5 3PT, 2-2 FT, +1

Considering it’s his second time suiting up at all this season, an unexpectedly strong game from Sexton. He showed his value as a release valve and dribble-drive threat alongside Luka and Reaves. He’s still shaking off the rust, but this was more than a glimpse at his value.

Grade: A-

Jake LaRavia

15 minutes, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 2 fouls, 1 block, 0-3 FG, 0-2 3PT, +14

This was a game where the scoreline doesn’t do justice to LaRavia’s impact. Once he came on in the second period, he really helped change the tide of the game. Even without scoring, he was an impactful player, evidenced by tying for a team high in plus-minus.

Grade: B+

Kevon Looney

I don’t imagine there’s going to be much different about this section for the vast majority of games this season. It’s very evident he’s past his prime and can no longer be impactful.

JJ Redick

Challenging his way into an early foul for Walker Kessler was suboptimal, but you can understand why he did it. It did leave the Lakers in a tough spot the rest of the game, but it was nice to see none of the players able to make the circular, challenging motion with their finger most of the game.

Grade: B

Sunday’s inactives: Cameron Carr, AK Okerek, Adou Thiero

Sunday’s DNPs: Jaden Hardy, Bronny James, Arthur Kaluma, Chris Mañon, Jarred Vanderbilt

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.

The Houston Rockets and Atlanta Hawks will complete their season series tonight at the Toyota Center.

The Rockets should get Fred VanVleet back tonight and maybe Marcus Smart. Steven Adams remains out. The fact that Houston still beat Atlanta without three key members of their rotation is impressive. The final few minutes of the fourth quarter caused PTSD, but unlike many instances last season, the Rockets held on.

With this being a home-and-home, Atlanta is likely to come out the more desperate team. No one likes losing to the same team twice in a row. The Hawks also probably felt that if the game was just one or two minutes longer, they would have completed the comeback. Still, with the game in Houston, the Rockets could try to get greedy. For Atlanta, they will feel like they won’t shoot 27% from deep again.

Houston only has one back-to-back against the same team again this season, and it will happen in late March with two games in two nights in Portland.

Tip-off

7:30pm CT

How To Watch

Space City Home Network

Injury Report

Rockets

Steven Adams: OUT

Marcus Smart: GTD

Hawks

Mo Gueye: OUT

The Line (as of this post)

HOU -5.5

Check here for updates

Schedule Advantage Counter

Rockets: 0

Opponents: 1

Looking ahead because we can

Wednesday night in Milwaukee against the Bucks

The vibes are pretty, pretty good in Minnesota right now.

The Minnesota Timberwolves just finished yet another fairly complete victory to begin the season 3-0, with the Kawhi Leonard-less Toronto Raptors serving as the team’s latest victim.

Unlike the previous win over the Orlando Magic, the Wolves did not endure poor shooting nights from Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball en route to a 23-point victory. Things are starting to click, and this team has a ton of potential.

In the past, Timberwolves fans could consider games like this a trap game. The team has had a propensity to play down to lesser opponents and keep them in the game, especially if said opponents are missing one of their star players. Minnesota now has a good start to rewriting that narrative with this thorough dismantling of a weakened Eastern Conference team at the Target Center home opener. 

Regardless of the evening’s narrative regarding Toronto missing Leonard, the Raptors are still widely considered to be one of the better teams in the now-loaded East. We’ll see how different things look later in the season when the Wolves play the Raptors in Toronto (and presumably with Leonard in the starting lineup), though this performance is exactly what should be expected of a Minnesota team with increasingly legitimate championship aspirations.

Jim Petersen said it himself. This all feels sustainable for the Timberwolves.

LaMelo Ball Impacts Winning

LaMelo Ball is good, dude. No, seriously.

Ball played a modest 17 minutes and finished the game at +33. This is, to put it mildly, a wildly inconsistent statistic, but it was felt today. His 15 points (on 5—for-8 shooting, 4—for-5 from three-point range) and eight assists tell the tale of how impactful his usage was in those minutes.

It was an opinion that was seemingly in the minority among NBA fans not located in Minnesota or Charlotte, though it is increasingly clear that LaMelo Ball has what it takes to be a winning player. Theatrics and demeanor aside, the guy makes smart plays and brings the best out of his teammates. There’s not much more you can ask from your starting point guard.

The eye test tells the same tale as the stats. Minnesota shot 22/29 from the floor in Ball’s 17 minutes tonight. We’ve seen all of the offseason statistics about how much Ball raised the offensive floor for the Charlotte Hornets over the latter half of last season – pushing them to all-time categories in offensive benchmarks – and it would appear that momentum has carried over to a Timberwolves squad that possesses far more talent than that Hornets roster.

When he wasn’t throwing lobs to Joan Beringer or Jaden McDaniels, Ball was manipulating the Raptors defense and creating wide-open looks for his teammates. This level of impact is what has allowed the Wolves to get out to these major leads to start the season, which also allows the team to limit his minutes to mitigate the risk of injury.

It’s a win-win situation for Head Coach Chris Finch 

Sure, Ball may have been limited by some foul trouble (four total across his 17 minutes, but the three in the first half hampered his playing time). However, it’s still a great time to buy stock in Ball’s long-term effectiveness on this team.

As of right now, the potential is limitless. It’s looking to stay that way for a while.

Defensive Identity Continues to Shine

Lost in the glitter and glam of Minnesota’s newfound offensive potential is the continued defensive impact of their stalwarts in Rudy Gobert and Jaden McDaniels. Their energy becomes infectious for the rest of the team’s effort, and this showed itself in holding the Raptors to a meager 38% from the field (35-91) and 26% from three (10-38). 

Particularly emblematic of this notion is the team’s work on Scottie Barnes, who was held to zero points (0-12). The Toronto Raptors are not one of the darlings of the Eastern Conference just because of Kawhi Leonard, but because they have a tough, well-balanced starting lineup and a pesky bench unit with plenty of guys who contribute to winning in different ways. 

This was not the case on Sunday night. The Raptors got some decent scoring nights out of RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, and Ja’Kobe Walter ( who continues to shine to start this season, scoring 22 on 7-12), but it was not enough to overcome the total offensive dud from Barnes.

That ability of the Wolves to completely take players out of the game could pay dividends for Minnesota going forward. It’s a tall task to ask a team to ascend within the Western Conference that’s already so brutal, but if they can limit the impact of at least one key player per team in this manner, it seems feasible to tip the scales in their favor. 

Defensive identity has been a hallmark of the team since the arrival of Gobert, while the offense had typically been dependent on the heroics of Edwards and former Timberwolves fulcrums Karl-Anthony Towns and Julius Randle.

With fewer concerns about getting buckets now that Ball is in town, the team can continue to lean into that identity while not fearing a lack of impact on the offensive end of the floor.

Strong Bench Performances

We all know what Ayo Dosunmu brings to the Timberwolves. He earned every penny of his new contract with the team, and he has continued to excel in his role. As the minutes for Ball will continue to be managed for various reasons, Dosunmu is a natural fit with any and all lineup combinations that Finch puts together.

We’re also beginning to see more of the reserves put in complete and complementary performances during their limited minutes.

Beringer, as mentioned before, is looking more comfortable on the offensive end of the floor. While he only played 13 minutes, the French center (the young one without the crazy facial hair) snagged six rebounds to go with six points on 2/3 from the floor and 2/2 at the charity stripe.

TJ Shannon Jr. also managed 15 points on 5/6 shooting in just 23 minutes of play. Bones Hyland did not have a great shooting night, going scoreless from the field, though he found other ways to impact the game as the diminutive guard contributed two steals and a shocking three blocks on the night. Even Trey Lyles, who has had a slow start to the season, pitched in three points, six rebounds, and a steal to go along with a +14.

As the new-look Timberwolves continue to grow into their newfound roles, the efficiency and production of this bench unit will begin to take a more concrete shape. The roster is deep enough that Finch can employ different personnel on any given night in order to adapt to whatever the matchup is throwing at him, and the players are buying into their roles on any given night.

The Timberwolves haven’t lost a game yet, and beyond a poor shooting night against the Orlando Magic, it’s been hard to poke holes in this team’s performance thus far. There will be bumps in the road yet to come, though it is encouraging to see few weak spots from top to bottom with this team.

Up Next

The Timberwolves’ time at home is short-lived, as the team will travel to Cleveland tomorrow for yet another game against an Eastern Conference opponent expected to make some noise in the playoff race.

Minnesota will take on the 1-1 Cavaliers at 6:00 PM Central Time. Catch the game on DAZN-MN and NBA League Pass.

The Dallas Mavericks (1-2) have a chance to lock the new-look Miami Heat (0-3) in the freezer on Monday when they travel to take on Giannis Antetokounmpo & Co. at the Kaseya Center. Tipoff is slated for 6:30 p.m.

The Heat have lost three in a row to open the 2026-27 season after nabbing Antetokounmpo in an offseason trade this summer and blowing up their young core to get the deal done. The Heat also brought on Klay Thompson in free agency, and now harbor two former Mavs sharpshooters in Thompson and Tim Hardaway Jr.

So, yea, if it sounds like Miami is the NBA’s geriatric unit, that might be why. They made quote-unquote “win now” moves this offseason, but the (very) early returns have yet to yield any actual wins. Meanwhile, the little Mavericks seem to be taking the first few baby steps toward growth, with the NBA’s fifth-youngest roster, guided of course, by sage ball guru Kyrie Irving.

So, let’s go over three points that make Monday’s Mavericks-Heat game appointment television.

Return of the return of Irving and Flagg

Both Irving and Cooper Flagg missed Saturday’s 122-106 loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the Mavericks’ home opener. Flagg injured his shoulder when Pacers guard Aaron Nesmith fouled him hard on the way to the rack in transition right before halftime, while the Mavs were on their way to upsetting Indiana, 121-105, the night before.

Irving sat the second night of the back-to-back on “injury management,” which is confusing since Irving’s recovery from the torn ACL he suffered in March 2025 was extended by six months as last season got away from Dallas after the calendar turned. Wasn’t he supposed to be ALL the way back after 18 months of recovery?

Anyway, whatever the case, Irving has been removed from the Mavericks’ injury report as of Sunday night, and Flagg has been upgraded to questionable for the game at the Heat. If Flagg isn’t back on Monday, we suspect he would be back on Wednesday when Dallas plays host to the Oklahoma City Thunder. He took a scary fall on Friday after absorbing the hit from The Coward Nesmith, but it appears the injury associated with the fall is a relatively harmless one. Bullet dodged.

All eyes on Miami

The Heat made big, splashy offseason moves this summer, but trading for Antetokounmpo limited how much they could bring on around him, as he is set to make more than $58 million this year — good for just north of 29% of the Heat’s available salary under the cap. So, while they have some intriguing players deeper on their roster, the bulk of their scoring punch comes from Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo in the frontcourt.

Klay Thompson is a hall-of-famer and a name, sure, but as Mavericks fans know, he doesn’t affect winning at this point in his career like he did during his time with the Golden State Warriors. Point guard Davion Mitchell, in his sixth season out of Baylor, appears poised to take the first big leap of his young career and has jumped out of the gates to the tune of 17 points and 8.7 assists per game through the first three games.

But Miami, as currently constructed, presents a pretty straightforward challenge. Throw all the resources you can at limiting Antetokounmpo from going nuclear, and see if the rest of the roster can beat you. Through three games at least, the Heat have not shown that they can.

The Charlotte Hornets coerced the star forward into foul trouble in Saturday’s 115-110 win over Miami, limiting Antetokounmpo to just 4-of-11 shooting and 14 points in 25 minutes. The Mavericks definitely have the bodies to throw his way at that position as well. The Heat have gotten most of their offensive production going to the basket through three games this year, and that makes sense — that’s a huge part of their star’s game. Staying in front of Antetokounmpo will be essential to stealing one in Miami. Dallas comes into the game as one of just four teams shooting over 50% from the field through three games played, while Miami is shooting just over 42% from the field to start the year, which puts them in the bottom third of the league, for whatever that’s worth.

For better or worse, the Heat are a name brand with easily recognizable star power. Getting a win in their barn would be a nice feather in the Mavericks’ hat in the middle of a brutal six-game stretch to start the season.

Intriguing young talent

One through line for the Mavericks through three games has been the emergence of a couple of intriguing young guards. In the season opener at the Houston Rockets, it was Marcus Sasser, who’s using a return to his old stomping grounds in the Dallas area as a fresh start after getting lost in the shuffle with the Detroit Pistons, who came up big with 17 points off the bench. He has shot a combined 8-of-14 from 3-point range to start the year.

In Saturday’s loss at the Spurs, it was Sergio de Larrea who stood out. His first bucket that night was his first NBA score, and that alone would have made for a landmark moment for any rookie, let alone a young Spanish phenom viewed in NBA circles as more of a project than a first-year contributor. He went on to score a team-high 21 points in the loss on 3-of-4 shooting from deep.

Which of the Mavericks’ young pieces will turn heads at Miami? And the third time around, could it coincide with a win? It’s early, but going 2-2 to start the year would be an encouraging start.

Regular Season Bell Ringer Standings:
Tyrese Maxey – 1.5
Joel Embiid – 1
Jaylen Brown – 0.5

---

The Sixers once again had to battle a sluggish start, but were unable to come back against the Pistons despite resilient efforts from key Sixers.

It was a poor shooting night for the Sixers, who made only seven threes compared to Detroit’s 14. The more alarming figure is their free throw tally on Sunday. They went 14-of-23, with Jaylen Brown and LeBron James both missing four each.

Brown struggled to get in a rhythm against the gritty defense of the Pistons, and it was evident quickly Anfernee Simons did not have it either. They were missing VJ Edgecombe badly in the first half, on both ends of the floor. They could’ve used Joel Embiid as well.

Just before halftime the Sixers gained some momentum thanks to one of our Bell Ringer nominees, but it would become a defensive struggle the rest of the way.

Now to Bell Ringer.

Tyrese Maxey: 29 points, 11-of-24 FG, 1-of-5 3PT, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, 1 block

Maxey finished the third quarter with only 11 points, but went ballistic in the final frame. He went 6-for-10 from the field, notched 18 points and kept the Sixers in striking range offensively in the fourth. His speed paired with shooting ability makes him impossible to stop when he gets an advantage on his defender. He was able to turn the corner on multiple occasions in the latter 12 minutes, giving the Sixers quick scores in their attempted comeback.

Maxey’s defensive impact has been felt in every game for the Sixers this season, and it continued tonight against the Pistons. His point of attack defense and team-wide effectiveness at blowing up dribble-hand-offs has created a large handful of easy transition buckets each game. Against Detroit, Maxey went vertical for a nasty block as well.

Tyrese Maxey blocks Jenkins and tells him "I'm sorry" pic.twitter.com/eb0WvUOOV3

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) October 26, 2026

He added a three and pull-up deep two in the fourth as he valiantly willed the Sixers into a close game late.

Unfortunately, Maxey collided heads with John Collins with 1:40 remaining in the game. He was able to walk to the bench under his own power and return to the game, but it was already out of reach.

LeBron James: 18 points, 8-of-15 FG, 2-of-6 FT, 5 assists, 2 steals, 2 rebounds

The intensity that Maxey had in the fourth to keep the Sixers in reach, LeBron James had at the end of the first half.

A sloppy start for the Sixers had them staring at an 18-point deficit with a 1:10 remaining before halftime. James goes on a personal 6-0 run to bring them to within 12, and gathered some much-needed momentum.

Three straight LeBron James buckets brings the Sixers back to within 12 at halftime pic.twitter.com/w9HbtmPP8f

— Drew Peltzman (@dapeltz13) October 26, 2026

James joined Maxey in their fourth quarter push, but poor shooting from the Sixers and decent shooting from the Pistons kept them from completing the comeback.

James has been an omnipotent force for the Sixers. He continued to fill holes offensively and fight defensively as the makeshift five with Dean Wade.

The King doing it on both ends pic.twitter.com/dZUi3WnXFq

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) October 26, 2026

Honorable Mentions

Labaron Philon Jr.: 5 points, 2-of-4 FG, 1-of-2 3PT, 2 rebounds, 1 assist

The rookie notched his first career bucket and three-pointer against the Pistons. The first field goal came in transition, off a LeBron James assist, as he found the bottom of the net on a pretty floater. He also displayed his playmaking once again with a savvy lob to Adem Bona in the paint over the taller defender.

Adem Bona: 6 points, 3-of-5 FG, 13 rebounds,3 blocks, 1 steal, 1 assist

Bona still needs to work on staying on the ground defensively, but you have to credit his energy level in attacking the boards with Embiid out. Against the Pistons, when he jumped he either got pump faked, or blocked a shot. He finished with just two fouls in what was an overall uptick of a performance.

Mike Brown and the Knicks aren't panicking.

Yes, the championship hangover could be real, with the Knicks having lost their third straight game to begin the new season against the Orlando Magic on Sunday night.

Regardless, New York's head coach remains unfazed, eager to continue tinkering and tweaking the way his team plays while keeping the faith in the team's star-studded starting lineup.

Against the Magic at home, Brown gave some extended playing time to newly signed backup big James Wiseman, who cut into the bench minutes of fellow newcomer Andre Drummond.

"Our starting five is what it is, everybody else after that -- until we're at a point where it's consistent -- I'm going to try to give guys [like Wiseman] that opportunity."

Along this vein, with regular bench unit floor general Jose Alvarado sidelined with a sprained ankle, second-year guard Tyler Kolek stepped into a larger role and delivered nine assists and zero turnovers. It will be interesting to see whether Wiseman and Kolek continue to earn the coach's trust as the season progresses.

Brown shared more of his outlook on how the contest unfolded, focusing on the "game within the game" rather than the final score and squandered lead.

"Our transition [defense] wasn't good in short bursts... we didn't do a great job of taking care of the ball... there's no single common thing," he explained. "In the first half, we gave up 13 fast-break -- or transition -- points. In the second half it was six, but those came off of our turnovers, so while we were doing a great job with our rules of transition defense, other things bit us in the behind."

"It's the focus on the details," he continued. "We'd go on a run, and then throw the ball away. I'd say three-fourths of our turnovers were our mistakes rather than their [defensive] pressure."

"We'd do a pretty good job on some closeouts, and on others we'd stop short and let them shoot a comfortable shot," Brown lamented. "We'd play great defense and force a tough shot, and then not box out. Those are the little things we have to embrace for 48 minutes, especially when we're not shooting the ball well."

In spite of the rocky start, Brown is as composed as usual. He has no doubt that the shots will start to fall, the rust will shake off, and the ring-wearing returnees on the roster will find their consistency again. 

However, the coach knows the attention to detail must improve for the Knicks' self-inflicted struggles to subside.

94-117. It can only be hoped that those 5 digits are remembered well by those who took the court for the Toronto Raptors today as a symbol of what cannot happen again this campaign.

The Bad

In the Raptors’ first game without Kawhi Leonard, the team fell apart early on against the still-undefeated Minnesota Timberwolves, a horrific loss punctuated by a very messy game from Scottie Barnes, where he went 0-12 from the field, picked up four steals, didn’t get to the line once, and scored zero points. That is an unquestionably bad night for Barnes, no two-ways about it, where there was no two-way play from the star who’s expected to do it all on the basketball court.

But, is this an early herald of Raptor-related doom? A sign that the team as currently constructed just can’t work? No, not really.

A lesser organization might try to pass around blame, talk about “analytical wins” or make some kind of excuses to the media, but the Raptors aren’t the type to do that. Rather, this game furthers a number of talking points that if applied correctly, could lead the Raptors to a much more stable future.

The Good

Starting with RJ Barrett. Barrett, who has been on the trade block for months, has once again proven his value to the team by giving the Raptors 20 points and three steals in a night where nothing was falling for Toronto. “I’ve done my part on the court this year,” RJ said last May. “And I will continue to do my part, and just hope things work out that way.”

Barrett did just that tonight, adding added offensive value to a team absolutely starving for volume, and handicapped on attack with Kawhi Leonard out of the starting lineup. In his place came Ja’Kobe Walter, whose 22 points led the team, while shooting 62.5% from three on eight attempts tonight. That’s the type of performance a dangerous bench player gives when given the opportunity to start, and Walter has yet again proven the importance of his shooting on a team that rosters so many players who are streaky from long range.

While Walter’s future on the team is likely secure, Barrett, who has yet to sign a contract extension, is playing his heart out on a team that has yet to commit to him. It would be extremely disheartening to see Barrett build up his value this year, just to be traded for a piece that is perceived to “fit” the Raptors’ needs better. Toronto has already made a Faustian Bargain, trading away a hometown star for a shot at championship success, once in the past decade, and the potential blow to morale for a failed version of such a swing could be catastrophic.

There is something to be said about standing by players that produce well for a franchise. The NBA is a business, yes, but there are real feelings and real relationships at stake here. But beyond that, when placing a significant bet on Kawhi Leonard’s health as contingent to team success, there is no world in which the Raptors can afford to play without a clear number-two on offence, who can step up and make the shots that Leonard is not there to make on nights he’s resting.

Barrett looks like he can be that guy.

The Ugly

The three-game sample size from Jakob Poeltl is tasting particularly unsavoury this year. As of October 25th, there has not been a concrete explanation from Raptors staff or from the centre himself as to why his offensive production has been practically non-existent this year. The Raptors’ starting centre has not grabbed double digit rebounds, nor scored double digit points, despite averaging more than 24 minutes of play per game. He has attempted four shots across three games, and has scored a total of nine points. Points scored tonight? Zero.

Considering Poeltl’s massive contract extension set to begin next season, this level of production is absolutely unacceptable. Lingering health issues are the most obvious potential culprit to blame, with potential obfuscation regarding these concerns possibly tied to attempts at maintenance of Poeltl’s trade value. But, for the team to work this season, something has to give.

Either Poeltl gets it together and starts looking like his old self within the month, or the Raptors will be put in a position where starting Collin Murray-Boyles full-time will be their best course of action. Either way, the team can’t go on like this.

And Scottie Barnes. From anyone else on this team, going scoreless would be the ultimate failure, and while it’s still a case of abject horror coming from Barnes, his 5 stocks is not nothing. Granted, his zero points is nothing, but it might serve as the perfect kick in the pants for the young star, who is averaging 25.5 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists to start off the season.

Is it a problem that Scottie Barnes didn’t score tonight? Yes. Who else has gone scoreless in a game? A lot of the good NBA players.

Stephen Curry had five scoreless games in his career, Kobe Bryant had 15, Kevin Garnett had 13, and even David Robinson had two. Now, are these outings anything to be proud of? No. Just like tonight, those occasions were failures on the parts of the players to do what they were meant to do on the court. But, Barnes is a professional, who, with any hope, will take this loss to heart and work hard to have it never happen again. At least, that’s what Darko Rajaković thinks.

Darko on what the Minnesota Timberwolves did well against Scottie Barnes tonight:

“I don’t think they did anything, to be honest with you, that they got him off the game. He just missed his shots. All the shots that he took in the game, I thought they were good shots.”

“This… pic.twitter.com/QUtfzZAh3L

— Omer Osman (@OmerOsman200) October 26, 2026

“This is not going to happen again to Scottie. Scottie is going to make those shots next time,” said the coach tonight, according to Omer Osman. And those words had better be true.

Scottie is the team’s leader, whether he likes it or not, and judging by last year’s playoff run, he likes it enough to be able to do it at a high level. Only he has the combination of pedigree and regular production in a Raptors jersey who can lead this team successfully. What happened tonight can’t happen again, but he probably knows that already.

What should you ride off into the sunset with?

The Raptors sucked tonight without Kawhi Leonard, but having two starters who go totally scoreless is an anomaly amongst anomalies. Scottie disappearing like that again is extremely unlikely this season, and while Jakob Poeltl’s production is beyond questionable at this point, the Raps’ coaching staff won’t allow that to happen on a regular basis, lest they condemn the team to total failure.

A 23 point loss is bad, but a 23 point loss to one of the world’s best scorers while your best scorer is out, and two of your most important players have their worst game of the season is something a little easier to swallow. The Raptors need a good, hard look in the mirror after this game, and changes must be made, both internally for players, and potentially externally to the starting lineup. But, while fans have a right to be miserable and demand better, there needs to be a level of understanding that sometimes, a good team is going to stink. And after two convincing victories, considering tonight a death knell for the team is unrealistic and unhelpful.

Toronto needs to learn to win without Kawhi Leonard. Expecting him on the court for every big game is a matter of wishful thinking, and how the Raptors adapt to make up for his absence will be an indicator of just how well they handle the realities of this season. Still, this was a low-low for the current squad.

well, this game was basically all of the Raptors chickens coming home to roost

– can’t shoot
– Kawhi out
– POA D worries
– Jak a negative
– Scottie negative on O

It doesn’t get worse than this at least!!

— Samson Folk (the coach) (@samfolkk) October 26, 2026

Samson Folk of Raptors Republic said it succinctly: “it doesn’t get worse than this.” At least, it shouldn’t.

Either way, today should be a turning point for the Raptors. They remain a dependable, if flawed product, and nights like tonight should be few and far in between. But if disappearing acts like this start to become the norm for anyone in Toronto’s starting lineup (or from six to ten on the bench too, for that matter), this team’s odds at real playoff noise might *poof* and vanish just like they did tonight.

Luka Doncic is already putting his stamp in the Lakers’ history books.

He had 52 points, eight rebounds and 10 assists in the Lakers’ 132-123 win over the Jazz on Sunday, surpassing LeBron James for sixth-most 40-point games with the Lakers.

James was with the Lakers for eight seasons, his longest consecutive stretch anywhere in his career. Doncic, whom the Lakers acquired in a trade from the Mavericks in February 2025, is entering this third season in Los Angeles.

It was the 10th time in Doncic’s career that he has scored 50 or more points. Since Doncic entered the league as the third overall pick by the Mavericks in 2018, only James Harden (16) and Damian Lillard (11) have had more 50-point performances than Doncic.

Doncic helped the Lakers storm back from an 18-point first-quarter deficit against the Jazz to jump to 3-0 record.

Doncic recently told the California Post that he hopes to spend the rest of his career with the Lakers.

“Hopefully, yeah,” Dončić told the California Post. “But as you know in this NBA business, you never know what’s going to happen. But I feel like I’ve found something here that’s very comfortable for me. And hopefully [that happens].”

Cade Cunningham was the best player on the floor for the Detroit Pistons in their 106-93 win over the previously unbeaten Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday night. He had 26 points and eight assists, both leading the team, and added eight rebounds. No surprise there. But if you were going to ask me who the star of the game was for the Pistons, it would be hard to choose.

It’s a testament to the team’s depth and the roster’s unselfishness that so many people contributed in such critical ways against one of the Eastern Conference’s best teams. Detroit’s depth was already set to be tested as starters Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson missed the game with injuries. Sixth man Isaiah Joe left the game tonight after suffering a tailbone contusion four minutes into his first on-court action.

The loss of Detroit’s best interior scorer, best perimeter defender, and second-best 3-point threat, and with all three handling the ball quite a bit for the Pistons, meant everyone else needed to play to the top of their abilities.

It wasn’t always pretty, but the Pistons got it done. So who was the star?

You could say it was Duncan Robinson, who hit five three-pointers, including several when the Sixers were flirting dangerously close to getting fully back into the game. You could argue it was Daniss Jenkins, who never saw a clutch shot he didn’t want to take (and make). He scored 18 points and added eight rebounds and six assists. He hit three of his four three-pointers, including one in the final minutes that put the game out of reach for good.

Looking beyond the box score, you could say it was Ron Holland. He played 23 minutes off the bench and only made two of his nine field goals. But he played absolutely ferocious defense all night. None better than when he was matched up one-on-one against Jaylen Brown, whom he had in absolute jail several times in the critical fourth quarter.

It seemed like it might be a laugher early as the Sixers didn’t seem to have it in them as they were playing their third game in four nights. The Pistons were up 21 early, but the Sixers made a 9-0 run to end the second quarter, and from then on it felt like Detroit was just trying to survive.

They scuffled on offense for long stretches, but they could almost always rely on their defense. Brown was 5-of-20 on the night, and Tyrese Maxey was 11-of-24. It would have been much worse, but he turned it on in the second half, scoring 23 of his 29 points in the second half.

The Sixers were able to cut it to five, but the Pistons somehow always had an answer. I think they might be good.

Los Angeles Lakers center Walker Kessler made his return to Salt Lake City to take on his former team, the Utah Jazz on Sunday, Oct. 25, as the Lakers produced a 132-123 victory at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City.

Kessler had fit in nicely through his first two games for Los Angeles, averaging 24 points, 8.5 rebounds and four blocks. It had been a welcome sight for a franchise in search of a quality big man in recent years.

Here’s how Kessler reacted to his return back to Utah:

Walker Kessler on return for game vs. Utah Jazz

After the game against the Jazz, Kessler admitted that the return did impact him a bit.

He finished with just two points after making just one of his two shot attempts in 28 minutes. He had six of his seven total rebounds come on defense.

"I think going into the game I let my emotions get the best of me,” Kessler said. “But you have to learn in those moments and move on. I’m just glad we got the win tonight … even though it wasn’t my best night I really appreciate (my teammates.)"

Kessler spent the first four years of his NBA career with the Jazz, but was limited to just five games last season due to a left shoulder labral tear.

“Obviously, Utah was the first four years of my career,” Kessler said. “It’s a special place for me. Kind of jumpstarted my career, you know, a lot of good memories.”

The injury required season-ending surgery in November 2025.

Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka and the front office made a trade for Kessler. He signed a four-year, $130 million contract extension after he was traded to Los Angeles. The Lakers had to give up two unprotected first-round picks (2031, 2033) and two first-round pick swaps (2028, 2030) with the Jazz.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Walker Kessler makes Utah return in LA Lakers' win over Jazz

So much for 82-0.

The Sixers dropped their first game of the season 106-93 to the Detroit Pistons Sunday night.

Tyrese Maxey found his footing in the second half, leading the Sixers with 29 points on 11-of-24 shooting. He bumped heads with John Collins late in the game and hopefully avoided any injury. LeBron James also couldn’t sustain his pushes for long enough, finishing with 18 points and five assists shooting 8-of-15 from the floor.

Jaylen Brown was one of many to have his worst game of the young season, shooting 5-of-20 from the floor for his 16 points along with four rebounds and four assists. Cade Cunningham led Detroit with 26.

Joel Embiid was expectedly ruled out with plantar fasciitis management. VJ Edgecombe was ruled out later in the day with an abdominal contusion. Jabari Walker was also inactive after tweaking his knee against Milwaukee, along with Dominick Barlow who remains on the shelf. Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson were out for Detroit.

Here are some thoughts at the buzzer.

First Quarter

• 41 year-old LeBron James taking (and winning) the jump ball. What a world we live in.
• Maxey took three of the Sixers’ first four shots of the night, good looks from in and outside the paint, but they rimmed out. Detroit had plenty of misses to run out on and get off to a 15-1 start to the game. Paul Reed grabbed two early offensive rebounds and putbacks over the Sixers’ committee of centers. The Pistons grabbed the first seven rebounds of the game.
• In fact, the Sixers’ first two rebounds of the game were credited as team rebounds. The first Sixer to record one was Dean Wade, who scooped up a blocked Brown layup and dished it to KCP for their first field goal of the game. Nick Nurse quickly subbed Adem Bona into the game to try to get some height in there.
• The offense looked just as ugly early. LeBron earned his first sarcastic cheer from the Philadelphia crowd after he finally made his first three throw. James started the night 0-of-3 from the charity stripe.
• Labaron Philon Jr. got early minutes again, but this time they were planned as opposed to filling in for an injury the night before. His first play of the game was a drive-and-kick to an open LeBron in the corner but the shot didn’t fall. Philon scored his first NBA points with a transition floater and missed a more contested look on the next possession. He challenged former Sixer Isaiah Joe at the rim and ended up on a poster. Joe took a nasty fall on the dunk but was able to remain in the game for the time being.

Philon Jr. gets the floater to go in transition for his first NBA bucket! pic.twitter.com/22D6yMqxcy

— Liberty Ballers (@Liberty_Ballers) October 25, 2026

• Philon also threw a lob to Bona, who was having his best stretch of the young season, pulling down six rebounds in the quarter. They even got a particularly strong defensive possession from Philon guarding Daniss Jenkins, and it was capped off by Anfernee Simons blocking the jumper to force a shot clock violation. The Sixers really could have put a run together had Wade been able to make an open three or two. To make matters more difficult, a shooting foul that would have sent Brown to the line got overturned to an offensive foul via challenge. Simons was able to get a layup in right before the buzzer, which cut the Pistons’ lead to 12 after the opening quarter.

Second Quarter

• Brown made a three off the catch, but none of his shot attempts off the dribble looked good at all, few of them looked close to going in. Maxey, still scoreless to this point, was also getting bottled up on his drives. The Sixers were lucky to score five points over the first four minutes of the quarter and the Pistons being unable to extend their lead.
• Defensively the Sixers kept looking better, three stocks helped them keep the Pistons scoreless for over three minutes and without a field goal for over five. Only getting two more points from Maxey at the line, the Sixers didn’t come close to stringing together a run to get back in it. They were struggling from beyond the arc again, making only three of their first 11 three-point attempts.
• Maxey finally got his first field goal of the night running out of a miss for a fast break layup and was able to get into the paint for a floater on the following possession. The Sixers were even struggling from the free throw line in this one though. Brown split each of his first three trips to the line.
• In the first quarter, a lot of the Pistons’ damage came from the Sixers’ inability to stop Cunningham. He only had three points in the second though. The Pistons’ role players were just not being challenged enough and got plenty of open jumpers. It’s one thing to get cooked by one of the best players in the league, but the display in the second was far less encouraging.
• With that being said, a mini-LeBron heater to end the half was enough to keep the Sixers within striking distance and get the crowd back into the game. After a half of missed layups he finally made a couple going downhill. It also helped that Wade finally saw a three go down. The Sixers were able to force a steal at midcourt and got the ball up to James for one last layup before the buzzer, keeping Detroit’s lead still at 12 at the half.

Three straight LeBron James buckets brings the Sixers back to within 12 at halftime pic.twitter.com/w9HbtmPP8f

— Drew Peltzman (@dapeltz13) October 26, 2026

Third Quarter

• The Sixers carried that momentum through the break. Brown got his hands on a pass that landed out of bounds to force a turnover on the first possession, leading to another banked in layup from LeBron. On the next possession James kicked to an open Brown in the corner for a three. Two more baskets and a turnover cut the lead down to five and forced the Pistons to call a timeout two minutes into the half.
• With Duren and even Thompson out, the Pistons were similarly shallow at the center position. They were also using a small-ball look with John Collins when Reed was on the bench. It was pretty big then when Bball Paul picked up his fourth foul early in the third. The Pistons had already used both of their challenges in the first half to remove fouls from Cunningham and Reed.
• The way this Sixers team gets their hands on the ball and rips it away from their opponents makes them really fun watch. Two more steals helped them keep clawing, but Cunningham found his groove again. He knocked down a pair of threes that halted the Sixers’ momentum.

COOKIES! 🍪 pic.twitter.com/3Ct139Bd2g

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) October 26, 2026

• Despite Cunningham going to the bench, the Pistons were able to hold the Sixers at an arms’ length. Philly’s offense stagnated again when they created less transition opportunities. Free throws continued to haunt the Sixers as Brown split another pair, bringing the team to 57% from the stripe.
• A Philon three looked like a glimmer of hope, but sloppy mistakes cost the Sixers that momentum. Brown dribbled his way into a couple double teams, and Bona gave a rebound right back to the Pistons trying to throw it underhand. Brown was at least able to find Bona in the dunker spot on their final possession of the quarter, cutting Detroit’s lead to nine.

Fourth Quarter

• The reserves continued to pick up bumps and bruises. KCP came up favoring his forearm after fighting through a couple screens and immediately called for a timeout to get subbed out of the game and head back to the locker room. He returned to the bench after a couple minutes and was able to check back into the game. 
• The injury didn’t immediately hamper the Sixers though. After Maxey got to the line, Bona timed up his first putback of the year for a big dunk. Maxey then hit a tough stepback in the paint and blew by everyone for a slam of his own. The building was deafening again as James and Brown checked back into the game in the process of Bball Paul giving the fans free chicken.

FROM THROWDOWN TO SHUTDOWN 😳 pic.twitter.com/KT8TXPNTiL

— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) October 26, 2026

• Any time the Pistons could keep the Sixers offense in the halfcourt, it would turn into ugly possessions that ended in a lot of midrange jumpers. The Sixers compounded the issue when the refs missed an and-1 call on Maxey. KCP got T’d for his disagreement, giving away a point the Sixers desperately couldn’t afford.
• LeBron got to the basket, and was also found in the dunker spot after a good possesion of ball movement, once again making it an eight-point game with the Sixers running out of time. They got a couple stops, but put together an ugly possession resulting in a KCP layup that didn’t come close.
• The game had to be momentarily stopped when Maxey bumped heads with Collins, making both players have to come off the floor for a possession. The Sixers fumbled two chances at a defensive rebound, eventually falling to Kevin Huerter who dished to Jenkins for the dagger three. This game was frustratingly winnable, but the Sixers never played well enough to come away with it.

The Oklahoma City Thunder were without Jalen Williams for most of last year as the star wing battled wrist and hamstring injuries that limited him to only 33 games and caused him to miss most of the playoffs. Williams loomed as one of this year’s most interesting players entering this year, and threatened to make the Thunder the team to beat for the 2027 championship race if he could regain his top form.

Now the Thunder are likely looking at another long absence for Williams after he left the floor on a stretcher in their third game of the season. OKC beat the Los Angeles Clippers, 108-101, on Sunday night, but Williams’ gruesome injury is the bigger story.

Late in the fourth quarter, Williams landed awkwardly after a drive to the basket, and his ankle appeared to bend the wrong way. He was carried off the court on a stretcher, and gave a thumbs up to the crowd as he was taken to the locker room. Watch the play here — but you might want to skip this one if you’re squeamish.

Jalen Williams has suffered a serious ankle injury, and they are bringing out the stretcher

Sending prayers. 🙏 pic.twitter.com/slBsN4GB4d

— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) October 26, 2026

Williams’ injury brought teammate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to tears as he was being loaded onto the stretcher.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander devastated after Jalen Williams suffered a scary injury 💔 pic.twitter.com/iVs9bgkmKr

— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) October 26, 2026

Here’s an ugly still image of Williams on the floor. Feel free to quickly scroll past this one if you don’t want to see an awful injury.

Ankles aren’t supposed to turn like that.

Prayers for Jalen Williams 🙏 pic.twitter.com/JPskYeeylF

— kawhi fan (@KawhiNewEra) October 26, 2026

Williams had eight points in 32 minutes before the injury. Gilgeous-Alexander poured in 34 points in the win, but for now the focus will be on Williams’ recovery.

Jalen Williams’ injury brought SGA to tears

Gilgeous-Alexander continued to be emotional when talking about Williams’ injury in his post-game interview.

SGA Shai JDub pic.twitter.com/IPCKwTDU6S

— Moonball (@moonball30) October 26, 2026

It goes without saying that the Thunder aren’t the same team when Williams is injured. At 25 years old, he’s one of the best two-way wings in the league. He already helped the Thunder win the 2025 NBA championship, and his return to the lineup had OKC thinking about raising another banner.

Let’s hope Williams can fully recover from this injury.

We’ll update this story as it develops.

Sound the mini-alarm. The champs are 0-3.

The Knicks squandered a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter and suffered an ugly 111-102 defeat Sunday night at the Garden to the short-handed Magic.

Jalen Brunson again failed down the stretch — just like in the home opener against the 76ers — and shouldered the blame as one of only two starters who spoke to reporters afterward.

“Not happy,” the captain said. “Plain and simple.”

Brunson was aggressive but missed 16 of his 28 shots and was off all around — 1-for-7 from beyond the arc, 3-for-6 from the free-throw line. He also committed a costly turnover with about two minutes remaining, lowlighting an overall sloppy evening from the Knicks.

On defense, the Knicks were carved up by forward Franz Wagner, who scored 21 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter. The German finished one assist shy of a triple-double.

The Knicks were outscored by 19 points in the final nine minutes, mostly because they couldn’t get a stop.

“Giving up 40 points in the fourth quarter is way too much,” head coach Mike Brown said.

The Knicks now are the first defending champions to start 0-3 since the 2011-12 Mavericks. A loss Tuesday against the Pistons would match the 1969-70 Celtics as the only defending champs to start 0-4.

“Everyone can say it’s early in the season. We can use that as an excuse, but I think the one thing I see is when we get those runs and start to look like the team that we did in the past, we get comfortable,” Brunson said. “So we have to continue to put our foot on the gas and execute like we did last year. And we’re not going to be the same as last year. That’s just human nature. But we have to accept this part of the journey and find a way to be better. Hopefully, after a couple games, we can look back and say we grew from that.”

Brunson’s struggles weren’t isolated to him Sunday. Mikal Bridges continued his start to forget with just six points, and the Knicks were outscored by 23 points over Bridges’ 35 minutes. Karl-Anthony Towns (22 points, 14 rebounds) played well offensively, but the collective defense was a problem.

“Biggest thing is I will continue to coach them and tell them the truth,” Brown said. “We’ve got to continue trying to embrace the little things. And we’ve got to make sure we’re doing it in practice so it has carryover in the games. I’ll really jump their ass if I see the effort not there. To me, that’s a whole different thing. If we’re trying and trying the right way, sometimes you’ve got to fight through stuff like this to get yourself on track. Our crap stinks; it does. We’re the only ones that can do something about it.

“There’s no light switch that we can just turn on and think we’re going to go win ballgames. Nobody is going to give us any of that. We have to be better with the little things until we start shooting the ball well.”

The Magic entered 0-2 and without top player Paolo Banchero, who sat with an ankle sprain.

The Knicks pounced. They scored the first 12 points and held the Magic scoreless for almost five minutes, a stretch that was interrupted when OG Anunoby trucked Wendell Carter Jr. for a flagrant foul.

A couple of hours later, the Knicks folded.

Adversity arrived faster than expected.

“One thing I’ve said during training camp and to this day is we’re going to see who we are within the first couple weeks of the season,” Brunson said. “And we’re seeing adversity. So how are we going to respond?”

The New York Knicks led by eight points with 8:40 left Sunday night at Madison Square Garden. Then the defending NBA champions watched another one slip away.

The Orlando Magic closed on a 33-16 run to beat the Knicks, 111-102, dropping New York to 0-3. The Knicks are the first defending NBA champions to lose their first three games since the 2011-12 Dallas Mavericks.

Those Mavericks lost their opener to the Miami Heat, the team they had beaten in the Finals six months earlier. Then they dropped games to Denver and Oklahoma City before beating Toronto.

Orlando did it without its best player. Paolo Banchero sat out with an ankle injury, and Jonathan Isaac was also out.

The Magic made 18 3-pointers. The Knicks made nine on 38 attempts.

Jalen Brunson finished with 28 points on 12-of-28 shooting. OG Anunoby added 22. Orlando's bench outscored New York's 47-11.

Franz Wagner had 23 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists for the Magic. Tristan da Silva added 19.

The Magic also had been winless coming into the game.

The close losses keep piling up for the Knicks. They lost by six to Philadelphia and four at Boston, where Jayson Tatum scored 36 and hit the 3-pointer with 30.3 seconds left that ended it.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Knicks stumble again as defending champs start 0-3 after loss to Orlando Magic