Karl-Anthony Towns has been a driving force for the Knicks’ offense all season. He averaged 24 points on 52 percent shooting in the regular season. He had 23 points in New York’s Game 1 win over Detroit.
But Towns was surprisingly relegated to a decoy in the second half of New York’s troubling Game 2 loss to Detroit on Monday.
Towns took just three shots in the second half against the Pistons. He did not attempt a shot in the fourth quarter.
“Just trying to have the game do what it does, just executing what we talked about,” Towns said after the game. “I thought we got some great shots, some great looks, you live with those kinds of great shots and great looks, especially when you’ve fought back in the game.”
Towns wasn’t going to throw any of his teammates or coaches under the bus when speaking with the media. But anyone who watched the game knew Towns was under-utilized.
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau echoed Towns, saying his center made good decisions with the ball in Game 2.
“He’s getting touches, he’s making the right play,” Thibodeau said after the Game 2 loss. “If he’s getting double-teamed, I don’t want him to shoot the ball over three people. That makes no sense to me.”
The Knicks shot 7-for-17 in the fourth quarter when the game was in the balance. They missed 8-of-10 three-point attempts.
None of those shots were from Towns, who hit 42 percent of his threes this season.
“I’m just executing what we’re told to do and trying to do my best and do it at a high level,” Towns said when asked about the second half.
No, Towns didn’t criticize anyone after the game. But he didn’t have to. The results spoke for themselves.
Yes, the Knicks got a questionable whistle in Game 2. But they also had a questionable offensive process.
That’s one of several things they need to clean up as the series heads to Detroit.
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