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Tom Thibodeau Bemoans "Low Energy" in Knicks' Latest Loss

Head coach Tom Thibodeau was not pleased with the New York Knicks' drive in their latest defeat.

Geoff Magliocchetti

Jan 3, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau watches his team play against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second half at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
Jan 3, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau watches his team play against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second half at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
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Madison Square Garden was a Magic kingdom in the worst way possible for the New York Knicks on Monday night.

A lengthy Knick homestand opened on a sour note, as New York dropped a 103-94 decision to shorthanded Orlando Magic. It was part one of a 14-game stretch that sees the Knicks remained stationed on the Eastern Seaboard until the final days before the trade deadline.

While giving credit to the visiting Magic, Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau was displeased with his team's "low energy" in the aftermath.

"They played a good game," Thibodeau said in video from SNY. "We played a low-energy game. We fell short."

Knicks apologists can point to the absences of Karl-Anthony Towns and Miles McBride but would be swiftly countered by the fact that the Magic's injury report (Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner, Mo Wagner, Jalen Suggs) could more or less serve as a starting five.

To Thibodeau's point, the Knicks (24-13) mustered on six and points in the second chance and fast break departments respectively. They dished out only 16 assists on 36 successful tries from the field and that doesn't even account for going 4-of-22 from three-point range, which saw them miss 15 in a row after a 3-of-6 start. All that and more dealt the Knicks their first three-game losing streak of the season in the immediate aftermath of winning nine in a row.

Some offensive dropoff could be expected with the loss of Towns and McBride: Jericho Sims put up only four shots in relief of Towns while the second unit scoring has left plenty to be desired even with McBride on the floor. But the tough showing against a de facto G League group led to Thibodeau speaking out.

Tom Thibodeau
Jan 3, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau watches his team play against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the second half at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

"I don't want to say [it was] a lack of effort. Guys were trying," Thibodeau noted (h/t New York Basketball on X). "We were playing with low energy. We couldn't get anything going. We have to get our energy back. [It's a] big part of this league."

"We've got to make it go our way. Sometimes you just got to dig down and find a way to win the game."

The Knicks' next chance to do so lands on Wednesday night when the reeling Toronto Raptors visit MSG (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG).

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Geoff Magliocchetti
GEOFF MAGLIOCCHETTI

Editor-In-Chief at All Knicks

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