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Bucks likely to benefit from Kawhi Leonard injury

TORONTO, CANADA - OCTOBER 21: Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Toronto Raptors looks on against the Chicago Bulls during the second half in the game at Scotiabank Arena on October 21, 2026 in Toronto, Canada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Cole Burston/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Per Shams Charania, Toronto Raptors star Kawhi Leonard will miss “a period of weeks” with left knee swelling.

“An MRI on Leonard’s knee showed no structural damage, but both sides will use the time to ramp up Leonard. The 35-year-old had an uncommon offseason, as he could not join the Raptors until after a resolution was reached in the NBA’s investigation into the LA Clippers’ salary cap circumvention case.”

The Bucks play the Raptors in their first NBA Cup game (see here for their full NBA Cup schedule) on November 6, which, if the multi-week recovery timeline holds up, means Leonard will miss it. Of course, the Raptors are still a formidable outfit without Leonard, but you’d still rather play them with the seven-time All-Star in street clothes. The Bucks need every advantage they can get!

Notably, the swelling is in Leonard’s left knee, which is not the knee he has previously had issues with; the 35-year-old has had multiple surgeries on the meniscus and ACL in his right knee.

Leonard issued a statement on Twitter, writing “it’s always frustrating missing time.”

“I came back to compete with this team and I’m focused on getting back to 100. Toronto, I’ve appreciated the love since I’ve been back. Returning soon.”

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Knicks get first win of season with convincing victory over Pistons

NEW YORK – Maybe there is such a thing as a championship hangover.

At least for one night and three quarters of nearly flawless execution, the New York Knicks avoided an embarrassing history, and it might signal that the NBA champions are not ready for an extended stint in basketball rehab.

Over the first three games of this new season, the Knicks looked nothing like the team that earned adulation and praise after snapping a 53-year title drought.

After a 111-97 win at Madison Square Garden over the Detroit Pistons, handing them their first loss, the 1969-70 Boston Celtics remain the last defending champs to start the season by losing each of their first four games. That team went 34-48 in its first season after legend Bill Russell retired.

New York, which snapped a six-game regular-season losing streak to Detroit, entered the game with the league’s least efficient offense, with a 40.8 field-goal percentage ranked only ahead of the Chicago Bulls.

“Close to 48 minutes of basketball the way we know we can play and like to play," Knicks head coach Mike Brown said after the game. "We had some lulls where we weren't as physical as we should've been, during the course of the game, but we had some really good moments. We had more good moments in this game than we did in the totality of the first three games, and that's why we got the win."

In the first quarter, those bad trends held true to form as Detroit, with victories already over fellow Eastern Conference contenders the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, and Philadelphia 76ers, raced out to a 38-25 first quarter lead, doing the things that they lacked in getting them bounced from the second round of the playoffs last season despite having the conference’s best record.

The Pistons relied on a balanced attack, with three different leading scorers in those three games, plus finding long-distance shooting, hitting 42% from downtown and scoring 118 points a game.

Their shooting abandoned Detroit after the first 12 minutes, as an 18-5 run by the Knicks in the second quarter tied the score at 43, led by reserve Landry Shamet, who scored 10 points during that stretch, as the Pistons only scored a combined 25 points in the second and third quarters and found themselves down by 25 entering the final quarter.  

The Knicks scored the first 11 points of the third quarter and took their biggest lead, as part of a 15-4 stretch that essentially put the game away as the home team ran its lead up to 27, and finished the road-weary Pistons off with a 12-2 flurry, as they missed 15 of their 19 shots coming out after halftime.

Karl-Anthony Towns led six Knicks in double figures with 27 points and 20 rebounds, his fifth 20-20 game as a member of the Knicks. Finals MVP Jalen Brunson, who went 1-for-10 in the first half, finished with 23 points (13-16 FT) and seven assists.

Almost like laying bricks for a new foundation at the World’s Most Famous Arena, New York shot 35% in the first quarter; then the bench came on, the Knicks heated up, and they started forcing the issue on both ends of the floor as Detroit went cold. Both teams finished shooting 43%, as the game got bogged down with a flurry of fouls and free-throw misses, especially by the Pistons.

Knicks coach Mike Brown called out his team for their lack of effort early in the season, saying they looked lethargic and were slow to get upcourt in transition, which contributed to their next-to-last pace in the league. Brown was singing a different tune after a thorough victory.

Brown said he challenged Towns at halftime and told him that Paul Reed, who replaced the injured Duren in the starting lineup, was getting the best of him in their matchup.

"KAT's a grown man, he's obviously a perennial All-Star. I just told him the truth." Brown added. "The guy is killing us in the paint. Anything he gets, he's putting it back. Catch him on the perimeter, guard him. And he did those things. I gotta take my hat off. I thought his shift in mindset was really big for us in the second half."

Detroit again played without All-NBA center Jalen Duren, who sat out with a hamstring injury, as Cade Cunningham had 19 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists. Reed led the Pistons with 22 points, but they hit a pitiful 9-for-37 (23%) from the 3-point line.

While their shooting woes continue, New York turned it on, especially defensively, when they needed to much like their championship series against the San Antonio Spurs, when they were down at least double digits at some point in each of the five games.

“This is a long season and we can have hiccups, but that’s what the season’s for: so they can correct it come playoff time so we can do what we need to do," Brown said.

Even Brunson joked during his television interview following the victory when asked, "You said the first few weeks of the season, you'll learn who you guys are. Who are you?"

Brunson calmed stated, "Uh, we're the Knicks, actually. But most importantly, we got to remember that Rome wasn’t built in a day. This is a new year, new team. Adversity started early, and so we just got to fight back."

The NBA champions, indeed.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Knicks get first win of season with convincing victory over Pistons

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Devils beat Stars 5-1 as Connor Hellebuyck wins his New Jersey debut

DALLAS (AP) — Connor Hellebuyck stopped 16 of the 17 shots he faced to win his New Jersey debut, Nico Hischier scored two goals, and the Devils beat the Dallas Stars 5-1 on Tuesday night.

Hellebuyck, the three-time Vezina Trophy winner, started four days after being traded by the Winnipeg Jets following his suspension for failing to report to training camp. It was his first win since April 9 at St. Louis, 3-2.

The Hughes brothers, Jack and Luke, and Jesper Boqvist, also scored for the Devils, who have won four consecutive games.

Justin Hryckowian scored for the Stars, who had a five-game winning streak snapped. Casey DeSmith, making his third start of the season, made 22 saves after allowing only two goals in each of his previous outings.

The five goals are the season high against Dallas, which went into play leading the NHL with a 1.68 goals-against average.

Hischier, the team captain in his 10th season with New Jersey, provided a 2-0 lead at 2:41 of the first period and 38 seconds into the second. Dallas’ challenge for goaltender interference against Timo Meier on the first goal was denied. Hischier has a team-high seven goals and two two-goal games.

Boqvist made it 3-0 midway through the second. After Hryckowian’s deflection pulled Dallas back within two goals at 16:08 of the second, Luke Hughes answered 28 seconds later.

BLUE JACKETS 4, FLYERS 3, OT

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Kent Johnson scored his second goal of the game 2:22 into overtime and Columbus beat Philadelphia after coughing up a three-goal lead.

Columbus scored three goals in a 2:46 span of the first period to lead 3-0 after one.

Johnson set up Adam Fantilli for the first goal at 10:58 of the first period, and then deflected Zach Werenski’s shot past Flyers goalie Dan Vladar at 12:54. Denton Mateychuk scored for Columbus 50 seconds later. Cam Talbot made 28 saves for his third win this season.

Johnson scored the overtime winner on a two-on-none breakaway, following a give-and-go with Fantilli. It was Johnson’s sixth goal of the season.

Philadelphia forced overtime by outshooting Columbus 28-6 over the final two periods.

Noah Cates scored his first goal of the season by poking a loose puck past Talbot, while Trevor Zegras cut the deficit to 3-2 with just under five minutes left in regulation. Zegras slid a pass to Tyson Foerster, who fired a shot on Talbot that Jamie Drysdale tipped into the net with 11 seconds remaining.

Vladar made 11 saves.

BLACKHAWKS 2, KINGS 1

CHICAGO (AP) — Wyatt Kaiser snapped a third-period tie, Spencer Knight made 25 saves and Chicago beat Los Angeles.

Chicago stopped a three-game slide while improving to 3-4-0 on a seven-game homestand. Roman Kantserov scored in the second, and the Blackhawks killed off a double-minor penalty on defenseman Sam Rinzel for high-sticking.

Kaiser picked up his first goal of the season at 7:17, beating Anton Forsberg through the goaltender’s legs with a well-placed shot from the left circle. It was the 11th goal for the defenseman in 187 career games.

Samuel Helenius scored for Los Angeles in the finale of a 3-2-0 trip. Forsberg stopped 25 shots.

Kings captain Drew Doughty and forward Corey Perry were scratched after they played in Monday night’s 6-3 victory over the New York Rangers.

The Blackhawks played without defenseman Bowen Byram, who missed his fifth consecutive game with an upper-body injury.

CANADIENS 2, BLUES 0

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Jacob Fowler made a career-high 46 saves for his second shutout of the season, and Zachary Bolduc and Florian Xhekaj scored as Montreal defeated St. Louis.

Mike Matheson had two assists as the Canadiens (7-3-2) improved to 4-1-1 on the road this season with their third straight away victory. Fowler’s shutout was his third in 24 career starts.

The Blues (5-6-1) fell to 3-2-1 at home as they were shut out for the second straight game. They lost 4-0 to visiting Carolina on Saturday.

Bolduc put the Canadiens ahead with 11:23 left in the second period, slapping a one-timer from the right circle for his fifth goal of the season. Bolduc’s first goal against his former team was assisted by Matheson and Alexandre Texier.

A first-round draft pick in 2021 by St. Louis, Bolduc scored 19 goals for the Blues during the 2024-25 season before being traded to the Canadiens for defenseman Logan Mailloux. The 23-year-old right winger had 12 goals and 30 points for Montreal in 78 games last season.

HURRICANES 2, BRUINS 1

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Sebastian Aho’s third-period goal gave Carolina a win over Boston in a matchup of early leaders in the Eastern Conference.

Pyotr Kochetkov made 14 saves to improve his record to 8-0-0, matching the longest season-opening winning streak by a goalie in franchise history. He tied former teammate Frederik Andersen, who set the mark five years ago.

Jackson Blake also scored for the Hurricanes, who were in their first home game in two weeks following a 3-1-1 road trip.

Carolina killed two power plays in the final five minutes, helping it halt Boston’s eight-game points streak.

Pavel Zacha scored for the Bruins, who had a two-game winning streak snapped. Jeremy Swayman made 28 saves.

Aho’s eighth goal of the season came with 9:41 remaining shortly after Boston’s Matthew Poitras hit the post with a backhanded attempt on an open net. Aho has a team-high 19 points for the team with the best record in the league.

Zacha scored 1:31 into the game on a power play, but the Bruins failed to convert the rest of the game.

ISLANDERS 4, PREDATORS 3, SO

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Kyle Palmieri and Bo Horvat scored in a shootout to lead New York to a victory over Nashville.

Horvat, Anthony Duclair and Brayden Schenn scored in regulation for New York. Semyon Varlamov made 20 saves and denied both Nashville attempts in the shootout to record his first win since Nov. 14, 2024.

Filip Forsberg had a goal and an assist, Alexander Kerfoot and Ryan O’Reilly scored and Juuse Saros made 25 saves for Nashville, which fell to 0-5 in games that have extended beyond regulation this season.

The Islanders led 3-0 early in the second before the Predators drew even.

Duclair scored at 3:07 of the opening period and Schenn followed at 8:07 of the first. The goal was the 300th of Schenn’s career.

Horvat’s goal at 1:08 of the second came on a one-timer off of a cross-ice pass from Matthew Schaefer, who has points in five straight games.

The Islanders had lost their previous seven games at Nashville, with their last victory coming on Oct. 28, 2017.

PANTHERS 5, JETS 1

WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) — Carter Verhaeghe scored twice, Matthew Tkachuk had four assists and Florida extended Winnipeg's slide to six games.

Brady Tkachuk had a goal and two assists, Niko Mikkola had a goal and assist, and Sam Reinhart rounded out the scoring for Florida, which scored three times on the power play. The Panthers salvaged their four-game trip with a pair of wins after opening with back-to-back defeats. Seth Jones had three assists.

Akira Schmid made 24 saves for his fourth victory in five starts.

Adam Lowry scored for Winnipeg, his second of the season and first short-handed. The Jets haven’t won since opening the season 4-1-1.

Clay Stevenson stopped 19 shots.

The Jets’ power play has gone stale at 0 for 14 over their last five games and 2 for 18 at home this season.

Florida scored three times by the 10:18 mark of the first period. The Tkachuk brothers have combined for 35 points in the first 13 games this season.

WILD 3, MAMMOTH 1

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Kirill Kaprizov scored his NHL-leading 14th goal of the season and added an assist, Jesper Wallstedt stopped 26 of the 27 shots he faced, and Minnesota beat Utah.

Joel Eriksson Ek and Maxim Shabanov also had goals while Quinn Hughes had two assists for the Wild, who have won three straight and went 3-1-1 on a five-game road trip.

Utah’s Logan Cooley scored with 1:21 to play to spoil Wallstedt’s shutout bid.

Kaprizov scored on the power-play just 48 seconds into the second period to give the Wild a 2-0 lead. He has multiple points in three consecutive games and has scored a goal in eight of his last nine games.

Kaprizov is also tied with Alexander Ovechkin for the fifth-most goals scored in October in NHL history.

Eriksson Ek also scored on the power play with less than five minutes to play in the first period and has eight points (3 goals, 5 assists) in his last seven games.

Karel Vejmelka made 27 stops for the Mammoth, who have lost three of their last five games.

GOLDEN KNIGHTS 4, SENATORS 1

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Raphael Lavoie scored his first career goal, a tap-in eight minutes into the third period to put Vegas ahead for good in its victory over Ottawa, ending the Golden Knights’ three-game losing streak.

Braeden Bowman scored a power-play goal for the Golden Knights, and William Karlsson and Jack Eichel each added an empty-netter. Nic Dowd got his 200th career point with a secondary assist on Lavoie’s goal.

Adin Hill stopped 25 shots, including a daring charge out of the net. Fellow goalie Carter Hart did not play after sustaining an undisclosed injury at the morning skate.

Shane Pinto scored on a power play for the Senators, who opened a five-game trip. Jonas Johansson made 25 saves.

CANUCKS 6, DUCKS 5, OT

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Filip Hronek scored a power-play goal with 11 seconds to go in overtime to cap a run of four consecutive goals by Vancouver, who snapped a 10-game losing streak with a comeback win over Anaheim.

The Canucks, who won for just the third time all season, trailed 5-2 after Anaheim’s A.J. Greer scored his second goal of the game with 7:37 to play in regulation.

But Jamie Oleksiak pulled Vancouver within 5-3 just 31 seconds later.

Jonathan Lekkerimaki then scored twice less than a minute apart — the second with 1:57 left in regulation — to send the game into overtime.

In addition to his winning goal, Hronek also had an assist. Liam Ohgren and Brock Boeser also had goals for Vancouver, while Elias Pettersson added a pair of assists. Leevi Merilainen made 18 saves.

The Ducks jumped to a 4-1 lead after two periods. Greer scored in the first period, then Jeff Malott, Beckett Sennecke and Leo Carlsson added second-period goals. Sennecke’s came on the power play.

Jackson LaCombe had three assists for the Ducks and Lukas Dostal made 27 saves.

SABRES 2, SHARKS 0

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Colten Ellis made 23 saves in his first appearance in more than two weeks to lead Buffalo to a victory over San Jose.

Olen Zellweger scored in the second period and Ellis did the rest to earn his second career shutout, robbing Kiefer Sherwood from point-blank range with 4:01 left in the game. Ellis had gotten pulled in the second period of his last start for Buffalo on Oct. 12 against Florida.

Zach Benson added an empty-net goal for the Sabres.

The Sabres beat the Sharks for the eighth time in the last nine meetings between the teams, including a shutout win last March in San Jose.

Yaroslav Askarov made 38 saves for San Jose in the first game back from a six-game road trip. The Sharks have only one regulation win in 13 games this season.

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Preview: Injury Plagued Utah Jazz Clash With the Spurs

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - OCTOBER 26: Mo Bamba #44 of the Utah Jazz looks on during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies on October 26, 2026 at Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images

It could be a very different looking Utah Jazz team when they step out onto the court on Wednesday night to face the surging San Antonio Spurs, especially in the front court. After a physical game on Monday night against the Memphis Grizzlies, Jaren Jackson Jr. is out for at least six weeks with a torn MCL in his right knee. Both Lauri Markkanen (wrist) and Jaxson Hayes (shoulder) are game time decisions and Jusuf Nurkic is still nursing a partial plantar plate tear in his right foot, leaving the team very short in the tall department.

Not a good situation when Victor Wembanyama is coming to town. The Spurs will be on the second night of a back to back, but may be well rested after a lopsided 130-103 throttling of the lowly Sacramento Kings. We can hope that Utah’s altitude may slow Wemby down, but then the French phenom has an altitude all his own. Who can the Jazz start to battle Wemby down low?

Enter Mo Bamba. Coming off a gritty 14 point, 7 rebound and 4 block performance against the Grizzlies, Bamba is finally getting an opportunity to contribute important minutes and the lights only get brighter on Wednesday night. To be clear, Zach Edey is not Victor Wembanyama. The challenge is about to get exponentially harder. But the way Bamba, Keyonte George and Ace Bailey rallied the troops on Monday night, almost stealing an unlikely victory when all the odds seemed stacked against them, says a lot about the fight in this under-manned squad.

Wednesday night will also provide a showdown between number 2 draft picks: Dylan Harper from 2025 and Darryn Peterson from 2026. Harper came off the bench most of last year, but was a vital piece in the Spurs’ run to the NBA finals. He has now earned a starting role on this year’s team. Peterson is still finding his legs in the pro league, has looked a little lost at times, but has also shown flashes of his potential. We can only hope that his trajectory follows Harper’s. Wednesday night will be a big test as he goes head to head with one of the young rising stars of the league.

The game can be seen on KJZZ TV beginning at 7pm MST, with the pre-game at 6:30pm.

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Carter Verhaeghe scores 2 goals and Panthers extend Jets' slide to 6 games with 5-1 win

WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) — Carter Verhaeghe scored twice, Matthew Tkachuk had four assists and the Florida Panthers extended the Winnipeg Jets' slide to six games with a 5-1 victory on Tuesday night.

Brady Tkachuk had a goal and two assists, Niko Mikkola had a goal and assist, and Sam Reinhart rounded out the scoring for Florida, which scored three times on the power play. The Panthers salvaged their four-game trip with a pair of wins after opening with back-to-back defeats. Seth Jones had three assists.

Akira Schmid made 24 saves for his fourth victory in five starts.

Adam Lowry scored for Winnipeg, his second of the season and first short-handed. The Jets haven't won since opening the season 4-1-1.

Clay Stevenson stopped 19 shots.

The Jets' power play has gone stale at 0 for 14 over their last five games and 2 for 18 at home this season.

Florida scored three times by the 10:18 mark of the first period. The Tkachuk brothers have combined for 35 points in the first 13 games this season.

Reinhart one-timed a pass by Brady Tkachuk over the shoulder of Stevenson and under the crossbar for Florida's third power-play goal of the night and a 4-1 lead. The Jets have scored more than three goals just once this season — a 5-2 victory over Minnesota on Oct. 13.

The Panthers went 3 for 5 on the power play, giving them 13 goals with the man advantage in their last eight games.

Up next

The Panthers host Winnipeg on Friday in the second of back-to-back games in Florida for the Jets, who visit Tampa Bay on Thursday.

___

See AP’s full NHL coverage here

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Varlamov Gets First Win Since Injury, Islanders Finally Beat Predators In Nashville With 4-3 Shootout Win

NASHVILLE, TX -- For the first time since Oct. 28, 2017, the New York Islanders (6-4-2) won in Nashville, defeating the Predators 4-3 in a shootout to snap a two-game skid. 

Goaltender Semyon Varlamov, who made his fourth start of the season, made x saves on x shots to earn his first win since Nov. 14, 2024, when he made 24 saves on 26 shots in a 5-2 win against the Vancouver Canucks. 

Here's how it happened:

The Islanders got the party started at 3:07 of the first period when Jean-Gabriel Pageau, at 4-on-4, found a crashing Anthony Duclair in the low slot:

Exactly five minutes later, Ondrej Palat found Brayden Schenn wide open at the back post to make it a 2-0 game:

That was Schenn's 300th goal of his NHL career. 

The Islanders scored their third unanswered goal at 1:08 of the second period after Bo Horvat ripped a Mathew Schaefer one-timer home:

That goal extended Schaefer's point streak to five games (two goals, three assists) and put him tied with Scott Stevens for the sixth most points by a teenage defenseman in NHL history, with 70:

Filip Forsberg got the Predators on the board at 3:07 of the second period while on the power play after he buried a backdoor feed from Jonathan Marchessault:

The Predators inched closer at 8:07 of the middle frame with Alex Kerfoot burying a loose puck after Varlamov made two strong saves on Nils Hoglander following a Matthew Schaefer turnover. 

The Predators evened the score at 4:16 of the third period after Ryan O'Reilly buried his own rebound, a loose puck sititng behind Varlamov. 

The game went to overtime where the Islanders found themselves on a power play but couldn't score.

The game would need a shootout where Kyle Palmieri and Horvat scored, with Varlamov denying both shots that came his way for the 4-3 win. 

UP NEXT: Islanders face the Minnesota Wild at 8 PM ET on Thursday to conclude their three-game road trip. 

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Knicks 111, Pistons 97: Scenes from win number one

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 27: Mikal Bridges #25 of the New York Knicks reacts after a three-point shot during the first quarter against the Detroit Pistons at Madison Square Garden on October 27, 2026 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Caleb Bowlin/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Josh Hart took just two shots tonight, but swished ‘em both—and the second was a clutch bomb that saved a blowout from becoming a very uncomfortable final two minutes at MSG.

When the New York Knicks (1-3) hosted the Detroit Pistons (3-1) at the Garden, the world champs were not necessarily desperate for a win. A fourth loss would surely have caused meltdowns across the nation, however. These Pistons are no pushovers, either, and although we’d read that Ausar Thompson would sit with a bad ankle, he suited up. Because real hoopers don’t pass up a chance to play on basketball’s biggest stage.

After surrendering 38 points in the first quarter, New York held Detroit to 25 over the next two quarters with a reassuring return to their defensive form. Jalen Brunson overcame a horrid shooting night with 13 points at the free-throw line, and Karl-Anthony Towns recorded a whopping 27-20 double-double as New York reached a 27-point lead in the fourth. Detroit chipped and chipped, however, until a mere 11-points separated the score. That’s when the otherwise gunshy Hart stepped in. Thanks to his bomb, New York could breathe a sigh of relief and finish the night victoriously. Final score: 111-97.

We love jinxes in our favor. The broadcast reported that Detroit had not trailed in a week. New York broke that dominant streak with four opening points. A certain sanity seemed restored to their offense, too. Early on, Karl-Anthony Towns stood tall at the left elbow and fed passes to slicing wings OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges. The latter was blocked at the rim but took a positive turn by connecting from deep, ending his own streak of ten consecutive misses to start the season.

Detroit stunk on the perimeter, bricking five of six tries. Cade Cunningham and John Collins crashed the glass, though, and four separate Pistons notched a block over the first eight minutes. Their defenders were extra-handsy with Jalen Brunson, who repeatedly failed to get significant separation. They were the second-best defense last season, after all.

After J.B. Bickerstaff called a timeout to settle his crew, they rode a 12-6 run to an eight-point lead, then stretched it to 11 and eventually 13. Following triples by Kevin Huerter and Daniss Jenkins, Anunoby made his first longball to slow the bleeding. But Paul Reed, filling in for an injured Jalen Duren, had a sizzle-touch and made his fifth bucket to secure a 38-25 lead at the buzzer.

The Knicks shot badly in the first quarter and did so again in the second. The guests were generous with their misses, too, and when Bridges connected on his second(!) triple, Bickerstaff needed another timeout.

KAT committed two fouls in six seconds, Cunningham hit from deep, and the deficit returned to double digits. The Knicks tightened their defense, though, and a run fueled by Shamet, Drummond, and a KAT tip-in tied the score near the four-minute mark. Detroit had missed almost everything this quarter, and Brunson’s shots weren’t falling either: he missed nine of his first ten. He, KAT, and OG combined to shoot just 1-of-14 from yard in the half. At least they attempted shots, which Josh Hart declined to do. Despite his shooting woes, Cap was nearly perfect at the line, netting two freebies that put his crew ahead 51-50 at intermission.

The guests shot 3-of-21 in the second quarter and were outscored 26-12. Whatever they did right in the half occurred around the basket: they won the paint 20-16, won the glass 30-23, and blocked nine shots. Making 13 of their 14 free throws kept the Knicks afloat, because their shooting sure didn’t. Neither team could make a three (NYK 26%; DET 24%). Reed topped the first-half scoresheet with 16 points. Brunson led the Knicks with 11.

Our heroes rocketed out of the locker room with a 13-2 run. Detroit’s frustration began to come out sideways. After a Duncan Robinson make, Towns and Reed got tangled under the rim. KAT bristled at an elbow to the back of his head and stepped toward the Piston. They had to be separated, Reed received a flagrant-one, and KAT made both freebies.

Plenty of time remained, but Detroit was coming unglued. Reed collected his fifth foul, Collins caught his second, Cunningham missed twice at the stripe, and Motown trailed by 18. The lead wasn’t just New York’s biggest of the night, but of the season. And for the first time this season, we saw the throttling effort that won a championship. They limited Detroit to six points through the first seven minutes of the half. Shamet’s corner dagger and free throws by Brunson inflated the advantage to 23. After an ugly final sequence, Josh Hart took his first shot of the night, a buzzer-beater three to close the period, 88-63.

New York went up by 27 in the fourth. It was a blast. Tyler Kolek got to play again with Jose Alvarado out and showed a little Grand Theft action of his own:

I always thought Coach Bickerstaff had some Thibodeau in him. So I scratched my head when, with eight minutes left and the deficit a not-out-of-reach 21, J.B. emptied his bench. The Pistons and Knicks were both playing the first game of a back-to-back, and the veteran coach seemed content to rest his guys to fight again tomorrow.

Mike Brown was less confident in the outcome and still had three starters on the floor midway through the quarter, with the lead at 18. Then 17. Bridges passed the ball behind Hart’s back, and Detroit capitalized on the gift with a layup. Brown needed a timeout at 5:24 with the score 99-84. During the timeout, Bickerstaff reconsidered his position. Smelling blood, he sent Thompson, Cunningham, Robinson, and Reed back in. The latter scored on a layup to cut the lead to 13.

Brunson and Cunningham traded buckets. Thompson got dinged for goaltending when he held the rim to avoid crashing into Anunoby, who was staring up at the iron and angling to shoot. OG made both. Robinson responded with a triple and a layup, and the difference was 13 with three minutes left. An OG turnover became a Holland dunk—an 11-point difference. They needed a score to keep the noose loose, and Hart drilled his second shot of the night for his second three. That sealed it for Bickerstaff, who gestured for his subs again. Soon after, the Knicks starters finally got to exit, too, and received an ovation for their second win of the campaign.

Up Next

Mo’s applying a layer of frosting on his recap. Our heroes travel to Chicago for a game tomorrow night. Safe travels, Knickerbockers.

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Islanders nip Predators in shootout to give Semyon Varlamov first win since 2024

An image collage containing 1 images, Image 1 shows Semyon Varlamov makes a save on Nils Hoglander during the Islanders' 4-3 shootout win over the Predators on Oct. 27, 2026 in Nashville, Tenn

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Seven-hundred and twelve long, testing days later, Semyon Varlamov skated off the ice Tuesday evening with an NHL victory in hand.

The last one, all the way back on Nov. 14, 2024 in Vancouver, was under a different coach and a different general manager and with a roster that included current Islanders front office advisor Matt Martin. Varlamov got hurt at the end of that month.

Since then, he’s undergone two partial knee replacements, months of endless rehab and faced the near-universal expectation that his career was over.

So, yes, there’s plenty to unpack about the Islanders’ 4-3 win over the Predators, and all of that is going to need to wait a beat. It’s hard to speak definitively about these things, but Varlamov is almost certainly the first professional athlete to return to play after such serious procedures.

Semyon Varlamov makes a save on Nils Hoglander during the Islanders’ 4-3 shootout win over the Predators on Oct. 27, 2026 in Nashville, Tenn. NHLI via Getty Images

Earning a win — and Varlamov did earn it on Tuesday, making 20 saves and playing the most confident, controlled game of the four he’s started so far this season — is an awesome achievement in the word’s most literal sense.

“A year ago, to be honest with you, I didn’t see this coming,” Varlamov said in the dressing room, after every single one of his teammates spilled off the bench to envelop him in hugs after Bo Horvat’s shootout winner. “It was such a grind the last two years to get to this point where you have an opportunity to play and compete at the highest level in the world.

“I’m very thankful for this opportunity again. And then just wanted to thank everybody who was involved in the rehab and the surgery and everything and just very, very proud of everybody.”

Much as Varlamov would probably like for everyone to stop treating his every start like a big deal, he could admit that this one was special. Even as he’d played well in losses to the Senators and Kings, he’d wondered when the first win would come.

The Islanders had put a lot of faith in him. General manager Mathieu Darche said that after watching Varlamov put everything into his rehab last season, “there’s no way I could not have given him a chance.” The Islanders signed Vitek Vanecek as insurance but after Varlamov made two AHL starts at the end of last season, Darche planned as if he would be the backup. Varlamov wanted to — still wants to — prove him and the rest of the organization right.

“Discussions in the summer, I don’t think anyone was sure [about it],” coach Pete DeBoer said. “It was such an unheard-of comeback, with what he had gone through. That was the reason we signed the goaltending depth we did, because I don’t think anyone was sure until he got to camp and started to play and you talked to him after he scrimmaged or played and had no ill effects and there was no swelling.

Bol Horvat scores on a shootout goal on Juuse Saros during the Islanders’ victory over the Predators. AP

“None of us went into camp with an easy feeling that we were gonna have him for the whole season. We really weren’t sure what we were gonna get.”

DeBoer admitted that it took until Varlamov made it through his first regular-season game, and came in the next day reporting no complications, for him to fully believe this would work.

“There’s nothing like live bullets like that,” DeBoer said. “That’s when I started to feel comfortable that he could actually do this.”

Brayden Schenn (10) scores a goal on Juuse Saros during the Islanders’ shootout win over the Predators. NHLI via Getty Images

It’s only a month in. But so far, Varlamov is holding up his end of the bargain, with admirers across the organization and around the league. Darche, speaking after the game Tuesday, said Avalanche GM Joe Sakic had passed on good wishes to Varlamov on Monday. Barry Trotz, working in Nashville as a senior advisor, had too when he caught up with the Islanders following their morning skate.

“If someone would have scored five goals tonight, the guys would have been happier that Varly got the win,” Darche said. “I’m so happy for him.”

Varlamov, not usually an emotional person, couldn’t help but feel the love.

“Everybody who supported me through the last two years, I know it’s been a long journey to come back and win the first game,” he said. “I’m just very humbled and very thankful.”

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Connor Hellebuyck turns in stellar debut as Devils rout Stars for fourth straight win

New Jersey Devils goaltender Connor Hellebuyck blocks a shot.
New Jersey Devils goaltender Connor Hellebuyck blocks a shot by the Dallas Stars during the first period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, in Dallas.

New Jersey gave the Stars Hell(ebuyck). 

Connor Hellebuyck made his Devils debut in Dallas on Tuesday, just days after the Devils pulled off the blockbuster trade to acquire the Olympic gold medal-winning goaltender and end a long-running standoff with the Jets, from whom he requested a trade. 

New Jersey easily dispatched the Stars 5-1, as Hellebuyck made 16 saves, only allowing a second-period goal.

Tuesday’s game with the Stars was Hellebuyck’s first start in an NHL game since April 13, 2026 — the final regular-season game for Winnipeg during the 2025-26 season — and kickstarted a new era in the Garden State.

New Jersey Devils goaltender Connor Hellebuyck blocks a shot by the Dallas Stars during the first period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, in Dallas. AP Photo/Julio Cortez

Hellebuyck made six saves in the first period during his Devils debut as his new team jumped out to a 1-0 lead less than three minutes into the game.

“It was a lot of fun. I thought the guys in front of me just played a perfect game for me to get acclimated,” Hellebuyck said after the win. “Low amount of shots, blocking everything, keeping everything to the outside. Letting me see things, letting me touch the puck a lot. I have to work through a little bit of the rust, but I just thought it was a perfect gam top to bottom.”

Nico Hischier scored twice, and Jack Hughes and Luke Hughes added a goal and an assist each for the Devils, who won their fourth straight.

Hellebuyck is a three-time Vezina Trophy winner and helped Team USA win gold at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, but he had not played in an NHL game amid the standoff with the Jets. 

The American netminder made his trade request public in late August, even though he had five seasons left on his contract. He did not report for training last month. 

New Jersey Devils goaltender Connor Hellebuyck (37) blocks a shot in the first period against the Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. Getty Images

The Jets suspended him for not appearing at camp. 

Following his first practice with the Devils on Monday, Hellebuyck said that he was “really looking forward to this day for a while now” and that “it felt good getting acclimated with a new group and having some fun out there.”

“I’m just really excited to play hockey again,” Hellebuyck said. “That was the hardest part about all of this, wanting to go back and not being able to.”

New Jersey Devils center Evan Rodrigues (17) celebrates with defenseman Luke Hughes (43) after a second-period goal at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. Getty Images

The Devils ended Tuesday night in second place in the Metropolitan Division.

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Islanders blow 3-0 lead, hold on to win 4-3 in shootout vs. Predators

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Kyle Palmieri and Bo Horvat scored in a shootout to lead the New York Islanders to a 4-3 victory over the Nashville Predators on Tuesday night.

Horvat, Anthony Duclair and Brayden Schenn scored in regulation for New York. Semyon Varlamov made 20 saves and denied both Nashville attempts in the shootout to record his first win since Nov. 14, 2024.

Filip Forsberg had a goal and an assist, Alexander Kerfoot and Ryan O’Reilly scored and Juuse Saros made 25 saves for Nashville, which fell to 0-5 in games that have extended beyond regulation this season.

The Islanders led 3-0 early in the second before the Predators drew even.

Duclair scored at 3:07 of the opening period and Schenn followed at 8:07 of the first. The goal was the 300th of Schenn’s career.

Horvat’s goal at 1:08 of the second came on a one-timer off of a cross-ice pass from Matthew Schaefer, who has points in five straight games.

The Islanders had lost their previous seven games at Nashville, with their last victory coming on Oct. 28, 2017.

Forsberg got Nashville on the scoreboard at 9:42 of the second with a power-play goal.

After scoring just one goal in the first 10 games of the season, Forsberg, the Predators’ career goals leader, has goals in two straight.

Kerfoot drew Nashville within a goal at 13:02 of the second, converting the rebound of a shot by Nils Hoglander.

O'Reilly tied it at 4:16 of the third, tapping in a loose puck sitting in the crease. He has three goals in his last two games.

Up next

Islanders: Visit Minnesota on Thursday.

Predators: Host Washington on Thursday.

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Nets lose OT crusher to Celtics as rookie’s mistake opens door for Jayson Tatum buzzer-beater

An image collage containing 2 images, Image 1 shows Boston Celtics player Jayson Tatum celebrates on the court with his arm raised, while Brooklyn Nets players look on, Image 2 shows A Brooklyn Nets player drives to the basket against a Boston Celtics defender during a game
Nets celtics

BOSTON — What should’ve been a dream night for Mikel Brown Jr. ended up a nightmare. And the rookie went from hero to goat in a couple of plays. 

After Brown’s huge last-second fourth-quarter shot forced overtime, his inexperienced mistakes on each end of the court cost the Nets in a 125-124 loss to Boston before a sellout crowd of 19,156 at TD Garden on Tuesday night. 

Brown’s 13-point fourth quarter and game-tying 3-pointer had forced overtime. But his ill-advised failed layup attempt with 2.3 seconds left in the extra stanza gave the Celtics one last chance, and his gaffe in getting screened off and switching — after the Nets had been told not to — let Jayson Tatum cash in on that chance. 

Mikel Brown Jr. (0) of the Brooklyn Nets drives to the basket against the Boston Celtics during a game at TD Garden in Boston, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. NBAE via Getty Images

Tatum’s 17-footer beat the buzzer. And the Nets. 

“It’s just a broken play. I blame me,” said Brown. “We weren’t supposed to switch that, and I switched it. Made a couple of mistakes down the stretch that hurt us, so I’m gonna take the blame on it. Learn from it, get prepared for next game and don’t make the same mistake again. But I’m definitely not gonna forget.” 

The Nets were clinging to a 124-123 edge when Brown missed a driving layup, and center Day’Ron Sharpe was initially whistled for a loose-ball foul with 6.1 seconds left in OT. But after coach Jordi Fernández called a timeout to challenge, the call was reversed to a foul on Luka Garza. 

Brown missed another layup attempt, this one ill-advised. He should’ve pulled the ball back out, and admitted as much. 

Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) celebrates his game-winning shot at the end of overtime to defeat the Brooklyn Nets at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Boston rebounded with 2.3 seconds remaining. The Nets shouldn’t have switched on the last play, but did when Brown got screened. The mistake cost them, missing Noah Clowney’s size on Tatum for what proved the winner. 

“I did see the open lane, and thought I had a layup. But the ball was already slipping out of my hands and [Paul George] was already coming towards my right side, so I felt like if I didn’t go up with it I was gonna fall out of bounds. That was my last resort,” said Brown. “But I can’t make an excuse. There’s a lot of plays down the stretch I messed up on that I take full accountability of, and I’m gonna be better.” 

Jayson Tatum hits the game-winning, buzzer-beating jumper in overtime of the Nets’ 125-124 loss to the Celtics on Oct. 27, 2026 at TD Garden in Boston. Winslow Townson-Imagn Images

The Nets had come back to force overtime. Brown had 13 points in the fourth quarter, including a game-tying 3-pointer with 0.3 seconds left to force OT. 

Julius Randle — who’d scored a dozen in that fourth-quarter comeback — hit the first two buckets of the extra stanza to give the Nets a 121-117 lead. But he fouled out with 24 points, while Michael Porter Jr. added 27. 

Neither could match Tatum, who poured in a game-high 40 points, eight assists, five rebounds and career-high 18-of-22 from the free-throw line. 

Mikel Brown Jr. hits a game-tying 3-pointer just before the end of regulation, but it wasn’t enough as the Nets fell to the Celtics in overtime. NBAE via Getty Images
Michael Porter Jr., who scored a team-high 27 points, goes up for a layup during the Nets’ overtime loss to the Celtics. NBAE via Getty Images

It overshadowed what should’ve been a huge breakthrough for Brown. 

“We were not supposed to switch, but he got cleaned,” said Clowney. “We’ve got to help him learn how to navigate that screen late in the game. Knowing that they’re looking for Tatum, maybe track right behind the footsteps. But that’s on us as the older guys here. We should’ve let him know that before we even left the timeout huddle. We’re staying with our own. You can’t be playing in between your guy and the rim or you’re gonna get screened. 

“He’s aware. He’s young, but he’s very capable. He’s been beating himself up about it. We’ve got another game Friday, man. He did a lot of good in this game. He got us in the game, got us into the position we were in.”

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Knicks rout Pistons in defensive gem for long-awaited first win of season

An image collage containing 2 images, Image 1 shows New York Knicks guard Mikal Bridges (25) is greeted by guard Tyler Kolek (13) and guard Miles McBride (2) after hitting a 3-point shot against the Detroit Pistons, Image 2 shows New York Knicks forward Og Anunoby dunks the ball over Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham as Pistons forward Ron Collins watches

Enough was enough.

The Knicks had enough of the hangover talk. Enough of the early-season panic. Enough of playing like a team that didn’t resemble the one that took over the city last year.

They broke out of their malaise and the champions finally reemerged.

An all-around defensive gem and a 27-point, 20-rebound masterpiece from Karl-Anthony Towns got them off the schneid and back in the win column — for the first time since clinching the title in Game 5 of the NBA Finals last year.

Mikal Bridges (25) is greeted by guard Tyler Kolek (13) and guard Miles McBride (2) after hitting a 3-point shot over Pistons guard Javonte Green during the second quarter of the Knicks’ 111-97 win over the Pistons on Oct. 27, 2026 at Madison Square Garden. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post

After dropping the first three games of the season, coach Mike Brown said, “Our crap stinks. It does.” Tuesday — particularly with how the Knicks defended — represented an air freshener of sorts.

The Knicks (1-3) woke up after a sleepy first quarter and imposed themselves on a previously undefeated — but shorthanded without the injured Jalen Duren and Isaiah Joe — Pistons side with a 111-97 win at Madison Square Garden.

“We looked,” Towns said, “more like ourselves from last year.”

A year after the Knicks lost all three regular-season matchups — by a combined 84 points — against the Pistons, they landed the first blow in what was at times a chippy evening.

Another sluggish start meant the Knicks trailed by 13 heading into the second quarter. The Pistons were shooting 60.9 percent from the field and had 38 points — after the Knicks had given up 40 points in the fourth quarter in their loss to the Magic on Sunday. Paul Reed of all people was killing them and had 13 points.

The Knicks were in danger of making the worst type of history. They were already the first defending champions to start 0-3 since the 2011-12 Mavericks. Only one defending champion has started 0-4, and it hasn’t been done in 57 years — since the 1969-70 Celtics.

The Knicks clearly had no interest in becoming the second. They tightened the screws defensively and flipped the game on its head.

“Once our guys realized, ‘No, no, I can’t react to them, I gotta dictate to them what’s gonna happen,’ ” Brown said, “and they do it with a smart level of physicality, then it makes it easier [to defend].”

OG Anunoby slams the ball over Cade Cunningham in the first quarter of the Knicks’ win over the Pistons at Madison Square Garden. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post

They held the Pistons to 3-for-21 shooting from the field and 1-for-11 shooting from deep in the second quarter. Jalen Brunson’s free throws right before halftime sent the Knicks into the break with a one-point lead.

And they promptly began the third quarter with an 11-0 run. Josh Hart’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the quarter gave the Knicks a 25-point lead heading into the fourth.

The Pistons shot just 6-for-21 from the field and 1-for-10 from deep in that third quarter. Pistons superstar Cade Cunningham went a combined 3-for-10 from the field across those second and third quarters.

As a whole, the Pistons had just 25 points across the middle two quarters.

“We talked about it and we knew we needed to do it,” Brunson said of the change in defensive intensity. “I think the way we played that second quarter really turned things around and helped us take control of the game.”

Towns took over on the offensive end in the third quarter as the Knicks pulled away, scoring 13 of his game-high 27 points.

Mikal Bridges delivered his best showing of the year with 12 points on 4-for-8 shooting from 3-point range. Landry Shamet drilled three treys off the bench. Andre Drummond, after his benching Sunday, provided a nice spark with 10 points and eight rebounds in 14 minutes — and brought the MSG crowd to its feet with a putback dunk in the second quarter.

KKarl-Anthony Towns goes up for a shot past John Collins (20) in the third quarter of the Knicks’ win over the Pistons at Madison Square Garden. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post

The Pistons cut their deficit to 11 points with 2:36 left in the game. But Hart responded with a 3-pointer that made sure it didn’t get any closer.

Reed was a nonfactor after his hot first quarter. He was given a flagrant foul for elbowing Towns in the head while fighting for a rebound and later picked up his fifth foul with 7:21 left in the third quarter.

“I thought we did a great job picking up the physicality,” Towns said. “And bringing a lot of energy to the game.”

It wasn’t a perfect Knicks performance, though. Brunson, Towns and OG Anunoby struggled in the 3-point department again, going a combined 2-for-16. Brunson’s shooting slump in particular continued as he finished 5-for-18 from the field and 0-for-5 from deep.

But he found 13 points from the free-throw line and got Ausar Thompson, who has guarded him the past three years in this matchup, into foul trouble all night. Brunson finished with 23 points and Thompson fouled out with 2:49 left in the game.

The Knicks will find low-hanging fruit in the Bulls as the second leg of a back-to-back Wednesday in Chicago. It’s the perfect opportunity to build off Tuesday’s showing and truly get this season on track.

Order has been restored.

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Pistons at Knicks final score: Detroit’s offense nonexistent in loss to NY

Oct 27, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) controls the ball against Detroit Pistons forward Ronald Holland II (5) in front of Knicks center Andre Drummond (0) during the first quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Ausar Thompson returned from his one-game absence with a rolled ankle, but Isaiah Joe’s bruised rear end needed more rest. They needed Joe’s shooting as Detroit struggled mightily after the first quarter and would go on to lose to the Knicks tonight.

Things started great for Detroit in the first quarter. It turned into an early block party with six total blocks in the quarter for the Pistons. Paul Reed had 13 points and Cade added nine points to go along with six assists. Detroit held a 38-25 lead after the first, but that was pretty much the end of their efficient offense.

The Pistons managed to shoot just 3-for-21 in the second quarter. They were outscored by 14 by the Knicks, and New York took a 51-50 lead heading into halftime. Reed and Cunningham combined for 31 points and 13 rebounds.

Things got worse in the third as Paul Reed picked up an early 5th foul, and John Collins’ head bounced off the hardwood after wrestling for a rebound with Karl-Anthony Towns. By the end of the third, Detroit was down 25 points as the Knicks held an 88-63 lead. If you combine the scoring of the two middle quarters, Detroit was outscored 63-25.

The Pistons did their best to claw back in the final frame, but the 25-point deficit was too big. They were able to make it an 11-point game with two-and-a-half minutes left, but the Knicks would hold on to win 111-97.

Cunningham almost had a triple-double with 19 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists. Reed finished with a team-high 22 points and nine rebounds. Detroit shot 42% from the field and 24% from three. Duncan Robinson, Javonte Green, and Daniss Jenkins combined to shoot 4-for-22 from deep. It just wasn’t Detroit’s night.

Let me end with this: it is absolutely miserable to watch Jalen Brunson play basketball. He loves to initiate contact, flop his head back, then fall to the floor in hopes of a whistle. Embarrassingly enough for the refs, they keep falling for it, too. He’s the smallest guy on the court who plays to find a whistle instead of trying to find a bucket.

If Cade is an ethical hooper, Brunson is as unethical as it gets. Brunson shot 5-for-18 from the field and 0-for-5 from deep, but he attempted a game-high 16 (!!!) free throws to still finish with 23 points. Nobody on the Knicks shot more than four, and nobody on Detroit shot more than five.

Here’s a flopping highlight reel just from tonight:

Yes, I am salty.

The Pistons will fly back to Detroit tonight as they’ll have their first back-to-back of the season when they host the Charlotte Hornets tomorrow night.

Go Stones.

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Knicks shake off slow start to earn their first win of the season in a 111-97 victory over the Pistons

The championship hangover is over. After the New York Knicks slumped to an 0-3 start and the second-worst offensive rating in the NBA, there was a lot of chatter about whether the team had spent too much time celebrating last season's victory. They had already lost to the 76ers, Magic, and Celtics, and the Pistons were coming to town to make it four Eastern Conference foes to topple the champs. Only, the Knicks weren’t buying that narrative, shaking off a slow start en route to a dominant 111-97 win over the Pistons.

Coming into Tuesday’s showdown at Madison Square Garden, the Knicks had struggled against the Pistons in their recent contests. Detroit swept New York in the 2025-26 regular season by an average margin of 28 points, and had won five straight regular-season meetings. When Detroit built a 13-point first quarter lead, it seemed like the trend was continuing. The Pistons scored 38 points in the quarter on 14 of 23 from the field (60.9%) and 4-of-10 from beyond the arc. Cade Cunningham, who has enjoyed plenty of success against the Knicks, got off to a fast start, scoring nine points with six assists and four rebounds in the first quarter.

Then the game changed in a heartbeat. The Knicks tightened up defensively, holding the Pistons to just 12 second-quarter points to take a 51-50 lead at the half. The Pistons would never lead again as the Knicks built their advantage to 25 points by the end of the third quarter. Some sloppy play from the Knicks in the fourth allowed the Pistons to get the game within 11 points, but they would never cut it to single digits.

Cunningham, who averaged 27.3 points, 11 assists, and 5.3 rebounds last year in the regular season versus the Knicks, finished with a strong performance for the Pistons, scoring 19 points, while chipping in nine rebounds and eight assists. Paul Reed, who has been filling in for the injured Jalen Duren, led the team with 22 points while also securing nine rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Ausar Thompson, who returned from injury, finished with 11 points and six rebounds before fouling out.

The Knicks were led by 27 points from Karl-Anthony Towns, who added 20 rebounds and three assists but also seven turnovers. Jalen Brunson also chipped in 23 points and seven assists but continued his struggles from the field, hitting just 5-of-18 shots from the field and 0-of-5 from beyond the arc.

Brunson came into the day shooting 39% from the field and 26.7% from beyond the arc. For his career, he shoots 48.4% from the field and 38.4% from deep. He’s also shooting 70% from the free throw line, which is down from a career 82.5% mark. The Knicks didn’t need his shooting to win on Tuesday, but they’ll need their captain to break out of his slump at some point in the near future.

Knicks Used Defense to Fuel Their Offense

The biggest turning point in the game came in the second quarter with the Knicks’ defensive adjustments.

After the Pistons scored 38 points in the first quarter, the Knicks cleaned up how they were switching and attacking on the screens. Not only did the Knicks limit the easy looks in the paint, but they started to force more turnovers on the wings. After the Pistons only turned the ball over twice in the first quarter, they had six in the second quarter and finished the game with 18 turnovers.

Playing good defense hasn’t been an issue for the Knicks, who came into this game 12th in defensive rating. The issue has been finishing the game.

“If you look at our second-half defense, the last game was the fourth quarter. I think the two games before that, Philly and Boston, were the third quarter; we were really bad,” said Knicks head coach Mike Brown before the game. “We’re ranked like 117 or something [in the second half], which would be 25th or 26th last year.”

While the Knicks got a little sloppy in the fourth quarter and let the Pistons go on a little run, their defense never fully surrendered. Instead of collapsing, the Knicks used their defense to clean up another issue they’ve been having early in the season: a slow pace of play.

“Our pace has to be better,” said Coach Brown. “Right now, I think we're 29th in the NBA in Pace, and I don't know if we ever were 29th at any point in time last year or years before that. For us to be 29th in the NBA in pace, that's not good enough.”

The Knicks actually came into this game 30th in pace after finishing 25th last season but 9th of 16 teams in the postseason last year. This season, coming into Tuesday’s game, 17% of their possessions were in transition, which was 18th-best in the NBA. Last season, 18.2% of their possessions were in transition, which was 16th. However, the Knicks were 7th in the NBA in points per possession in transition last year at 1.17. This season, they are 21st at 1.03 PPP, so it’s not that they are getting far fewer transition opportunities, but they are playing a bit slower and are far less effective in transition.

That wasn’t the case on Tuesday. After the Pistons opened the game with five fastbreak points in the first quarter to zero for the Knicks, New York used their defensive intensity to create fastbreak chances. By the end of the third quarter, when they had built an 82-61 lead, New York had 10 fastbreak points, while the Pistons still had five.

Knicks Interior Offense Has Been Struggling

Shooting has been a problem overall for the Knicks this season, but while some of their three-point shooting woes could be natural small sample variance, their issues in the paint were potentially more impactful.

The Knicks were not a dominant team in the paint during the 2025-26 regular season, but during their postseason run to an NBA title, the Knicks led all teams in scoring inside the paint, averaging 54.4 points per game. Much of that came off cuts and second-chance points with Towns operating as the hub of the offense on the perimeter. That level of success had not carried over this season.

Last season, the Knicks shot 65.8% from the restricted area during the season. This year, it’s been 61.9%. Short-range shots outside of the restricted area have been worse. That range of shots in the paint, usually floaters and short pull-ups, was an area of strength for the Knicks last season, at 45.2%. This season, they came into Monday shooting just 26.7% in the paint outside of the restricted area. That means their overall field goal percentage in the paint had dropped from about 58% to 49.6%.

A big part of that could be connected to Brunson’s struggles this season. We know Brunson has had tremendous success on his floaters and push shots, but his success rate has been far worse to start this season, as mentioned above.

Another issue that’s likely just small sample-size noise is how frequently the Knicks are getting blocked as a team this season. Last year, the Knicks were blocked 4.3 times per game. This year, it was 6.7 per game coming into Tuesday's game. If you take out the 76ers game where they were blocked 10 times, they’re still averaging 5 blocks per game, and the Knicks were blocked 11 times again on Tuesday.

Pistons Improved 3-point Shooting Goes Cold

One of the biggest stories coming into the game was the Pistons' improved shooting from beyond the arc. Detroit came into the game 3rd in the NBA in three-point shooting at 42% on 37.3 attempts per game. Last year, they were 17th in the NBA in three-point shooting at 35.6% on 30.9 attempts per game. Through three games, 39.7% of Detroit’s points had come off threes, which was 4th-most in the NBA. Last season, 28% of their points came on threes, which was 29th in the NBA, so it’s a major difference.

The threes the Pistons were getting were also based mostly on pace and ball movement. Just under 30 of the Pistons’ 37.3 attempts per game from beyond the arc are catch-and-shoot threes. That’s the 7th most in the league. Last season, just 22.5 of their 31 attempts per game were on catch-and-shoot threes, among the bottom third in the league.

A big part of that increase has been Coach J.B. Bickerstaff changing how he uses sharpshooter Duncan Robinson, using him more as an on-ball screener to free him up to get open looks when defenders help on the screen.

Using Duncan as a screener “just puts defenses in tough decisions,” explained Bickerstaff. “Especially when you get him in some of those rip screens for John [Collins], who has the lob threat ability. Do you want to switch a smaller guy onto him? Do you have to bump him? Then Duncan's so intelligent. He does a great job of reading those screens and what the defenders do, and he's a step ahead of them. He knows when to slip out, he knows when to set it, he knows what route to take to get to the next screen quicker. So all those things just make it easier for him to create those opportunities and put defenses in tough situations.”

Duncan Robinson came into the game averaging 19.7 points, 2.3 assists, 2.0 rebounds and 1.0 steals per game. Robinson hit 15 threes in the first three games of the season, and his 53.6% mark from three is the highest mark of any player in the NBA who has made at least 10 3-pointers entering Monday.

The Knicks were aware of that too.: “You gotta give it up to a guy like Duncan Robinson,” said Coach Brown before the game. “Duncan is shooting the mess out of the ball right now, and they do a lot of actions for him. And his pace is really good, so we’ve got to make sure we do a job on him at the start of actions.”

The Knicks were not only aware of it, but they seemed to gameplan for it.

In the first half, Robinson was 0-8 from the field, including 0-6 from three. He would finish the game just 4-of-14 from the field and 2-for-10 from three. The Pistons as a team hit just 9-of-37 (24%) from beyond the arc. It's too early to write off Detroit's early success from beyond the arc as a fluke, but much of Robinson's success had been attributed to his stated confidence with his shot and confidence in the flow of the offense. The hope is that Tuesday's poor showing doesn't impact that confidence.

The Knicks will head on the road to take on the Bulls next, while the Pistons head home to take on the Hornets before going back to New York to face the Nets later this week.

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Islanders 4*, Predators 3 (*SO): Varlamov’s first W in two years

Dude earned it. | NHLI via Getty Images

Nearly two years since his last official victory and two partial knee replacements later, Semyon Varlamov added regular season win number 290 to his NHL career in the most surprising of places, as the Islanders prevailed in Nashville via shootout after the open play portion of the game finished 3-3.

Not as dramatic but every bit as satisfying, the Islanders hadn’t won in Nashville since well before Varlamov joined them: that was in 2017, when John Tavares (who scored a hat trick) was captain and Doug Weight was coach.

The Islanders blew a 3-0 lead in the latter half of the second period and early part of the third, then hung on with a gutsy defensive and goaltending effort to force OT. Varlamov turned away both shots he faced (well, one was a smart pokecheck on Ryan O’Reilly, the other was a shot wide), while Kyle Palmieri and Bo Horvat each cashed in theirs.

[NHL Gamecenter | Game Summary | Event Summary | Natural Stat Trick]

It was a nice start for the Islanders in a penalty-heavy first period. Anthony Duclair got them on the board with some smart play at 4-on-4, leading a rush with J-G Pageau and getting inside his man to redirect Pageau’s pass in from just above the crease.

That gave the Isles a 1-0 lead at 3:07, and five minutes later they doubled it after some nice if chaotic work around the Predators’ zone, Brayden Schenn ultimately slipping a loose puck in after he fumbled his initial shot. Whatever works.

The Islanders picked up where they left off to start the second period, with a really impressive shift among Simon Holmstrom, Bo Horvat and Anthony Duclair. They cycled and moved to space in an impressive enough display that MSG gave Josh Bailey a whole segment about it during the intermission. Horvat finished with a one-timer off a beautifully threaded cross-slot pass from Matthew Schaefer.

Just 1:08 into the middle frame with a 3-0 lead, it looked like it might be a cruise of a night for the Islanders. But they let the Predators back in.

A penalty and then careless moves got them in trouble. Nashville scored two goals in a 3:20 span, including one on the power play, and then nearly got an equalizer when Ryan O’Reilly had daylight on a point-blank chance but put his shot off the outside of the post.

The Islanders settled and also slowed things down a bit after that five-minute spiral, and they were able to steer the game to the second intermission without further damage.

Alas, that just delayed the inevitable. The Predators had the better of play to open the third, and even when the Islanders interrupted that with a decent forecheck that drew a penalty committed against a hard-working Victor Eklund, the Islanders power play fizzled.

Ryan O’Reilly came out of the box to create a chance and then soon finished off the garbage on a shot that Varlamov stopped but let squeak behind him, much like the Predators’ second goal, to tie it at 3-3 just 4:16 into the third.

That’s not meant as a critique of Varlamov’s play, at most a sign of rust, or just the bounces. Because overall, Varlamov was alive and making some excellent saves during sustained stretches of Nashville pressure. And that continued as the Predators tasted blood, and scared us all with their fifth power play of the night.

After that power play ended, the Predators kept the pressure up, and nearly took advantage when Casey Cizikas had to flee to the bench after losing his helmet on a desperate defensive play. But Adam Pelech blocked the shot from the slot, and Cizikas’ replacement, the reborn Ondrej Palat, earned himself an outstanding chance with a power move down the left wing that forced a great save from Jussi Saros.

The Isles did not see another great chance as they survived, really just survived, to get to overtime. O’Reilly, Steven Stamkos and Mavrick Bourque continued to torment them. Simon Holmstrom was part of one decent counterattack sequence to relieve the pressure, but otherwise it was the Islanders Pelech-blocking Nashville shots left and right. What was once a potential 3-0 cruise for the Islanders felt like a relief just to get a regulation point.

Overtime

OT was a little different. The Predators won the opening faceoff, but after the Isles won back possession, Schaefer drew a penalty. With Varlamov off for an extra attacker during the delayed penalty, the Islanders were smart and patient moving the puck around and creating looks for a 1:45 of bonus 4-on-3.

On the actual power play, the Islanders kept possession (as well they should, 4-on-3) but never really mounted an additional threat. At the end, Schaefer had to sprint back to spoil a breakaway for Filip Forsberg as he came out of the box — this after Schaefer had played the entire overtime period.

A shootout seemed the perfectly appropriate way to end this. And after it was done, his teammates mobbed Varlamov, all jumping up and down in a huddle by the Isles goal to celebrate his long road back.

Up Next

The Central tour continues and concludes Thursday in Minnesota.