Knicks vs. Trail Blazers: How & Who to Watch in Return to MSG
The New York Knicks are coming home for the holidays.
After a lucrative trip out west, the Knicks will take to Madison Square Garden's hardwood for the first time since Nov. 13 when they take on the visiting Portland Trail Blazers. It'll be the first of two meetings with the Blazers this season, the Pacific Northwester rematch scheduled for Mar. 14.
The Knicks earned a 3-2 record against Portland's Western Conference brethren, topping prime competition from Utah and Denver to open things up. Though they fell to Golden State and Phoenix, they capped things off on the right note with a 129-119 win over Oklahoma City on Monday. Jalen Brunson put up his best point total as a Knick to date with 34, which also tied his regular season career-high.
Portland has fallen back to Earth after a 9-3 start, dropping five of its last six, including a 114-96 defeat in Cleveland on Wednesday night. A visit to New York City, which also features a showdown with the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday, wraps up a four-game trip against Eastern Conference competition.
New York and Portland split last year's pair, each team winning on its home floor. RJ Barrett had 31 points while Immanuel Quickley and Obi Toppin united to match that tally off the bench in a 128-98 triumph in March.
What: Portland Trail Blazers (10-8) @ New York Knicks (9-9)
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
When/Watch: Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET, MSG/MSG Go
Who's Favored: NYK -3.5
Keep An Eye On: RJ Barrett
The Knicks have waited a while for a homegrown talent to rise to the heights of stardom. Barrett was, and likely remains, the most legitimate option they've had in years and that status was more or less solidified when he was granted a nine-figure extension as a de facto consolation prize for not landing Donovan Mitchell.
His last MSG showing did not go well: facing off against fellow Team Canada rep Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Barrett played a mere two minutes of the second half in what's been the modern Knicks' most humiliating defeat to date. The bad vibes continued on the road trip, as Barrett shot 27 percent from the field over the first four, including a brutal 2-of-23 mark from three-point range.
But Barrett began to right the ship in the rematch with the Thunder: his 25-point, eight-rebound output (not to mention a 10-of-16 tally from the field) was by far his best performance of the season. We've seen hints of the Barrett that earned his extension in the midst of mediocrity: right before the first Oklahoma City matchup, he was the headliner in an otherwise listless win over Detroit. But he needs to start stringing together consistent performances and sustainable success. Even his success has come with asterisks: Monday's win saw him lose the ball six times.
Blazer to Watch: Shaedon Sharpe
Sharpe wasn't around when the teams met for Summer League glory in July, forced to leave Las Vegas early with a shoulder injury. The seventh overall pick was thrust into a starring role thanks to franchise face Damian Lillard's injury.
Things got off to a strong start: in his opening five debut on Oct. 28, Sharpe put in 14 points and a few showstopping dunks. But the road hasn't been kind to Sharpe, who has shot 1-for-11 over the first two legs and lost his starting role to Justice Winslow before Wednesday's visit to Cleveland.
Modern Madison Square Garden, at least from a professional basketball sense, is a place where many an opponent has enjoyed a breakout and there'd be no better place for Sharpe to make a statement. Current Portland reps see how valuable Sharpe can be as they seek to claw their way back from a brutal 55-loss campaign last season.
“I heard (Lillard) say it earlier this year, he was saying like, Shaedon is the type of talent that could take us over the edge of being a fringe playoff team into a full-blown playoff team fighting for a championship,” center Drew Eubanks said of Sharpe. "I hadn’t seen Shaedon play … but after watching him play (his) first six games, and in preseason, I’m like, he’s super talented. He has the world at his fingertips."
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
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