In the latest twist in this fascinating start to the 2022-23 NBA season, the once floundering New York Knicks are now the hottest team in the league. They extended their longest-active winning streak to seven games on Sunday with a 109-106 triumph over the Indiana Pacers.
A true back-and-forth affair, the game was played within single digits the entire way, and it featured a stunning 17 ties and 19 lead changes. In fitting fashion, it went down to the wire and the Knicks did not officially secure their victory until Tyrese Haliburton’s potential game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer.
As has been the case so often during this winning streak, Julius Randle and Jalen Brunson were the story for the Knicks. Randle put up 25 points, 14 rebounds and three assists to record his third consecutive double-double, while Brunson led the way in the scoring department with 30 points on 11-of-22 from the field. Those two combined to score the final 11 points for the Knicks, as they turned around a six-point deficit in the final two minutes.
Late in the fourth quarter, the Pacers went on a mini run, pushing their advantage to six points thanks to a Buddy Hield 3 and Aaron Nesmith dunk on consecutive possessions. Earlier in the season, that probably would have been the beginning of the end for the Knicks. Not these days.
Brunson delivered an immediate response by draining a step-back 3-pointer, stealing the ball from Andrew Nembhard and coasting in for a layup to cut the deficit back down to one point.
Randle took over from there, knocking down six consecutive free throws in the final 45 seconds to first give the Knicks the lead, then make sure they maintained it. The only time the Pacers scored after the Nesmith dunk was when the Knicks intentionally fouled Haliburton up three.
This is the longest winning streak for the Knicks since the 2020-21 season when they won nine in a row. Given how they’ve been playing in recent weeks, especially on the defensive side of the ball, they’ll have a decent chance to match that streak with the Golden State Warriors and the Toronto Raptors up next. The Warriors are now without Steph Curry due to a shoulder injury, while the Raptors are in a total funk and have lost five consecutive games.
-80030-1671436216.jpg)
