NEW YORK – In a strange season, the New York Knicks and Boston Celtics are underwhelming and staring at a crossroad, and an answered prayer might just become the inflection point.
RJ Barrett’s Hail Mary shot at the buzzer shattered a 105 deadlock and both teams’ identical 18-20 record. With 1.5 seconds left, Barrett banked in a 3-pointer over the outstretched arm of 6-foot-8 Jayson Tatum.
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RJ BARRETT CALLED GAME pic.twitter.com/KOIFmnuvFa
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) January 7, 2022
The earlier boos turned into chaos as the Knicks completed a 25-point comeback win, 108-105, over the stunned Celtics Thursday night (Friday, Manila time) at the Madison Square Garden.
The win pushed the Knicks (19-20) into the Top 10 of the Eastern Conference and dislodged the Celtics (18-21).
It could have been the other way around.
But Evan Fournier went bonkers against his former team anew. The French gunner fired 10 3-pointers, tying JR Smith’s franchise record, on his way to a career-high 41 points. It marked the third time Fournier has scored 30-plus points in the season, curiously, all against the Celtics. He had 32 points each in their first two meetings this season.
“Maybe there’s a little bit of extra motivation. But it’s not something that I do on purpose. Like, I don’t wake up thinking, ‘Okay, it’s the Celtics, I have to play better.’ I think it’s just natural,” Fournier said.
The Celtics let Fournier walk away in the offseason, and he signed a $78-million deal with the Knicks. But except for his three hot-shooting games against them, Fournier hasn’t lived up quite well to the sizable contract and expectations in New York.
His career game came on the heels of a scoreless performance against Indiana Tuesday night (Wednesday in Manila).
“When you go through a season like that where there’s a lot of inconsistency, and you’re trying to find a rhythm and try to cruise, you always start the day with a fresh attitude and try to attack the day with positivity,” Fournier said.
Fournier’s positive game overshadowed Julius Randle’s negative energy towards the sellout crowd.
Randle, who had taken a lot of heat from the fans for his team’s lackluster play this season, made a thumbs-down gesture following a basket at the height of the Knicks’ run in the fourth quarter.
It was an apparent response to the crowd’s earlier boos when they were down 20 points early in the second half.
“Shut the f*ck up,” said Randle when asked after the game about his antics.
Fournier came to Randle’s defense.
“No big deal, in my opinion, because the dude played hard as hell. He fought extremely hard and played well. So, when you give everything you have for something, and you put so much into something, and it doesn’t work out, sometimes it’s frustrating,” Fournier said. “But it’s the business we’re in. He’s the star player. So, of course, he’s going to get more criticisms, but that comes with it. And I think he understands it.”
Randle has been playing mad over these last two games since coming back from a bout with COVID-19 and the social media chatter about his poor performance and body language.
He has channeled all the criticisms into motivation to recapture his All-Star form. In the Knicks’ current two-game winning streak, Randle averages 26.0 points on 50 percent shooting from the field, 12.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.5 steals.
Against the Celtics, the Knicks’ star had 10 of his 22 points in the third quarter, where they rallied to come within seven, 84-77, which set up the dramatic ending.
The Celtics’ 23-year old star, Tatum, carried Boston on his back as long as he could. He poured in 36 points with his last basket, a step-back jumper over Barrett, tied the game for the last time.
But the 22-year old Barrett responded to Tatum’s challenge. Barrett was struggling before the final play, hitting only 3 for 14 from the field, but that did not sink his confidence.
Revenge served cold.
“It was definitely a tougher shot because Jayson is so tall, but every time I shoot, I think the ball is going in. It was like a playoff game. It was crazy. It was like the first game of the season,” said Barrett referring to their epic double-overtime win over Boston.
The Knicks were 1-229 when trailing by 25-plus points over the last 25 seasons.
For a moment, that record was about to get extended until Barrett threw a prayer.
“Man, that was crazy. I didn’t even really see it because I fell,” Barrett said. I didn’t see it go in, but from everyone else’s reaction, I knew it did.”
Indeed, it went in for the Knicks’ biggest comeback win since rallying from a 26-point deficit against the Milwaukee Bucks in 2004.
For the Celtics, it was another heartbreaker and a painful reminder of their lack of composure plaguing them this season. They have lost six of their last seven games that were decided in the clutch (score within five points in the last five minutes of the game).
“Repetitive result that is happening. Either we make adjustments and get tired of it, or it keeps happening,” Boston coach Ime Udoka said.
The Celtics joined the New Orleans Pelicans as the only teams to lose four games after leading by at least 15 points this season, per ESPN Stats and Info.
“It wasn’t about the last play again. It was everything leading to it. And we need some leadership. Somebody that can calm us down and not get everything goes a little south,” Udoka said.
The Celtics have brought back the 36-year old Al Horford this season for veteran leadership to their young nucleus of Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart and Robert Williams, who have an average age of 25.75 years. But it has yet to yield the desired effect.
In the first 20 minutes, their youthful exuberance had them running the Knicks to the ground until the Knicks’ veteran smarts and physicality took over.
“I think it’s a lack of mental toughness to fight through those adverse times,” Udoka said.
The Knicks seem to have plenty of that with the way they fought back in a game that appeared headed to what could have been their worst loss of the season.
In a strange season where every team’s key players have gone in and out of the health and safety protocols, the Knicks’ deep and veteran-laden team is starting to turn the corner. They have won six of their last 10 games and moved 2.5 games behind the sixth seed.
On the other hand, the Celtics are trending towards the opposite direction, losing their previous two games and six of their last 10.
The two teams will meet again on Saturday in Boston (Sunday in Manila) for their final regular-season matchup.
The Celtics will be looking to tie their head-to-head series to two wins apiece. But another Knicks’ win would keep the New York franchise on pace to their magical playoff run last season, where they had a 20-20 slate after 40 games.
If that happens, the Knicks could circle back to this game as the inflection point of their season.
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Alder Almo is a former senior sportswriter for Philstar.com and NBA.com Philippines. He is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey, and writes for the New York-based sports website empiresportsmedia.com.