Knicks Acknowledge Exhaustion After Second Straight Loss

It was a working weekend for the New York Knicks, who have lost two in a row for the first time in nearly two months.

Jan 4, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau questions a call during the first quarter against the Chicago Bulls at United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images / David Banks-Imagn Images

The New York Knicks were not immune from the holiday hangover that probably struck many across the country after New Year's Day.

The Knicks were subjected to a miles-racking back-to-back over the weekend, which yielded consecutive losses for the first time in nearly two full months. New York put up a respectable effort against the Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday before falling to the Chicago Bulls by a 139-126 final just about 24 hours later.

“Back-to-backs are part of the league,” head coach Tom Thibodeau said on Saturday, per Stefan Bondy of the New York Post. “Couple that with [the Bulls] were off for three days, I knew they were going to be high energy. And I thought offensively we scored plenty. Defensively, we have to do better."

Jan 4, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) controls the ball against Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vucevic (9) during the first quarter at United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images / David Banks-Imagn Images

This weekend marked the Knicks' third back-to-back of the season and they stand at an even 1-1-1 in that trio so far. This one, however, was little tough considering they played in raucous locales respectively celebrating a 14-game winning streak and the honoring of a franchise legend in Derrick Rose.

The on-floor faces of the Knicks (24-12) wasted no time eliminating the fatigue issues in the aftermath of the latter loss, which set several dire landmarks: the 139 points that Chicago scored are the most a Knicks opponent has scored this season and the minus-24 margin the Knicks endured in the third was their worst in any period this year.

“We could make every excuse under the sun if we wanted to,” said Karl-Anthony Towns, who posted a 44-point, 16-rebound double-double, in Bondy's report. “At the end of the day, OKC found a way to beat us. Chicago found a way to beat us. Simple as that. We could make excuses about every little thing. But at the end of the day, they found a way to beat us."

Some have used the losses as a referendum on Thibodeau's continued insistence on playing the starters major minutes. On Friday, four example, all five New York starters played at least 40 minutes in Oklahoma City.

Jan 3, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; New York Knicks guard Josh Hart (3) reacts after a play against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second quarter at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Josh Hart, no stranger to extended workloads, reasoned that it's far too early in the season to start having that discussion.

“Tired legs? We’re not even halfway through the season yet so legs can’t be too tired," Hart said, also per Bondy. "We didn’t execute. We didn’t play as good as we should have. We didn’t deserve to win [on Saturday]."

Fortunately for the Knicks, relief is on the way and plentifully available: beginning with Monday's visit from the Orlando Magic (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG), each of the Knicks' next 14 games will be staged on the Eastern Seaboard. Only two won't be staged under Madison Square Garden's roof and the outliers are destined for Philadelphia and Brooklyn.

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