Thursday Night PrimeTime Report – 1/16/25

Good evening,

Here is tonight’s Thursday Night PrimeTime Report:

Knicks

Overtime? No problem. Although the Knicks – minus Karl-Anthony Towns – had a difficult second half in Philadelphia, they outscored the 76ers 16-10 in overtime to win 125-119. The Wells Fargo Center is MSG South!

Is it fair to say the Knicks officially own their rivals? I don’t think Jalen Brunson showed them much brotherly love. He scored 38 points in this game, including 16 between the fourth quarter and the overtime period. Neither did Josh Hart, who recorded his 11th career triple double. This game was tied five times, but Philly never led.

This game should not have gone into overtime, but the Nova Knicks made no excuses, even though Josh Hart played over 49 minutes and Jalen Brunson over 45. By a significant margin, the Knicks lead the NBA in points per game and minutes per game by their starters. This is not a feasible strategy, especially now that KAT has a bone chip in his thumb.

KAT will not miss any time due to this injury, barring any unprecedented complications. He will not need surgery, and he will play through the bone chip. It is concerning, though, as the Knicks lack depth at center. It was around this time last season when Julius Randle dislocated his shoulder and one of the Knicks’ most impactful players missed another postseason. With Mitchell Robinson still injured, and with Jericho Sims regarded as more of a starter than a bench player, the Knicks have little to no depth at center. This is concerning.

KAT’s injury makes things more complicated for a Knicks team that already has an unreliable bench. Hopefully the team will make a trade soon.

In this game, the Knicks had a biggest lead of 16 points while Philadelphia never led. The score was tied five times with a longest run for eight.