Knicks lose another lopsided game to Cleveland

CLEVELAND — For the Knicks, any game against the best teams in the NBA will be accompanied, not only by a national TV audience, but by the constant reminder that they have yet to win one of these this season.

So, as they fell apart in the second half against the Cavaliers Wednesday night, dragging their record against the top three teams in the NBA — Cleveland, Boston and Oklahoma City — to 0-8, the Knicks could reasonably argue it will be different in the postseason. The question wasn’t so much what went wrong in the 124-105 loss to Cleveland at Rocket Arena but rather, would it change when the playoffs begin?

While Jalen Brunson accompanied the Knicks on this trip to Cleveland and Atlanta, he remained sidelined for this game, along with backup point guards Deuce McBride and Cam Payne. And Mitchell Robinson was held out on the second half of a back-to-back set of games, meaning that he hasn’t been in any of the eight games against the NBA’s elite teams.

On this night, was it tired legs? Was it the missing pieces for the Knicks? Or was it a gap in talent that explains away how this game turned from a terrific first half to a disappointing bus ride to the plane to the next city.

Without Brunson, OG Anunoby has raised his offensive game and this seemed to be one of those nights – the Cavs unable to slow him down early as he scored 19 of his 23 points in the first half.

The Knicks quickly opened up a double digit lead in the first quarter and held that through much of the first half, leading by as many as 15 before settling for a 60-53 lead at the break, thanks to the play of Anunoby, who was 7-of-10 shooting — including 5-of-6 from three — along with five assists.

But whatever the reason the game turned quickly in the third quarter. It took just 4:15 for the Cavs to take their first lead since the opening minute of the game and they kept piling on, converting 17-of-21 shots — 15-of-15 from two-point range — in the third period to take a 91-85 lead into the fourth quarter.

The Cavs kept extending the lead in the fourth, bringing in waves of fresh legs while the Knicks wilted. By the end, the frustration showed as Karl-Anthony Towns, who had 25 points and 13 rebounds, scored on a follow with 3:55 to play and then was jawing at Cleveland’s DeAndre Hunter, who simply waved him to the Knicks bench.

So what does it mean? Do the Knicks have to prove something in the regular season to make someone a believer in the postseason?

What the Knicks didn’t want is to find themselves on the losing side of a one-sided game, like the 37-point loss the Knicks suffered in the last meeting with the Cavs, or the opening night loss to Boston when they trailed by that much. With 2:11 left, the Knicks emptied the bench, trailing by 21.

“Every game is revealing to you, telling you things that you need to work on,” Coach Tom Thibodeau said before the game. “It also tells you things that you’re doing well. There’s always a lot of challenges. Sometimes when you look at the regular season, the variables that you sometimes don’t look at: Who’s out for them? Who’s out for you? Where are you in terms of rest advantage, disadvantage? Where are they? So those things do figure into it. But you strive to get better each and every day.

“You’re seeing it now. And we’ve dealt with it all year. Mitch missed the first 60 games of the season. That’s a lot. It was an opportunity for other guys to get in there and grow. We’re seeing it now with Jalen being out. We have more than enough. Next guy get in there and get the job done. Understand what the job is, get in there and execute.”

The Cavs still remember what the Knicks did against them in the postseason two years ago when Robinson was a dominant factor against their front line of seven-footers, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley. And they know whoever is out there they have to approach it the same way.

“Same mentality,” Darius Garland said after the morning shootaround. “Bring a lot of physicality. No Brunson, so a lot of guys are going to be playing really hard. A lot of things they don’t do as much they will probably come out and try to do against us. So just try to keep us on all our toes, got to be locked in defensively. …

“[They’re] the same team. Have to go in with the same mentality. Got to play our brand of basketball. We’re worried about ourselves at this point. We’re working on the things we have to work on, trying to get ready for this playoff push.”

NOTES & QUOTES: Thibodeau said that Brunson could practice if the Knicks practice in Atlanta, having been cleared for basketball activities — with a possible return to game action either Saturday or Sunday, back home against Phoenix. McBride and Payne sound even closer to playing. “Those guys, they’re close,” Thibodeau said. “They’re not quite there. Cam’s in the same boat and Jalen’s getting pretty close as well. Deuce and Cam should be any day.”