Knicks beat Clippers and close in on top-six seed
The Knicks are closing in on the playoffs.
With an impressive 106-100 road victory against the stacked Clippers, New York, currently fourth in the East, moved three games ahead of the seventh-seeded Celtics with four to play.
The Knicks (38-30) only need to finish in the top six to avoid a play-in game, and their magic number is 2. In other words, the franchise’s first playoff berth in eight years could be clinched as soon as Tuesday with a victory over the Lakers and a Celtics defeat to the Heat.
“That would be big,” Derrick Rose said. “But at the same time, (Tom Thibodeau) always talks about going through the finish line. We have to do our jobs to make sure we’re sharp and have a keen type of focus.”
The Knicks’ victory Sunday afternoon, among the best of their fantastic season, was on the back of Rose, the unexpected super-sub, who scored 19 of his 25 points in the first half and shot an efficient 11-for-17 with eight assists. He picked up the offensive slack for a struggling Julius Randle (14 points overall), who waited until crunch time to reiterate his All-Star status by connecting on three consecutive jumpers in the final three minutes.
Still, Thibodeau pushed back on the premise that Randle didn’t play well at Staples Center.
“Let me correct you — Randle did have a big night,” the coach said. “They’re double-teaming him. He’s spraying the ball. Everyone tends to measure people on points and shot and not the all-around game.” (Randle had 14 rebounds and five assists.)
Nobody doubted Rose’s impact Sunday.
“Derrick played extremely well,” Randle said.
The Clippers (45-23), a bona fide contender, were at full strength with Paul George and Kawhi Leonard in the lineup, yet were held to their lowest point total since April 14. Leonard dropped 29 points but missed 17 of his 26 attempts, as L.A. managed just 12-of-35 overall from beyond the arc.
New York’s victory snapped its two-game losing streak. It was also the franchise’s first road win over the Clippers since 2010.
The Knicks are also guaranteed at least a .500 record on their six-game road trip, with the finale Tuesday against the LeBron-less Lakers.
“Everybody has been doubting this team all along,” Thibodeau said. “We knew going on the trip we had been playing good basketball but we were going to have to take it up as the season ends people are fighting for different things.”
Despite the healthy cushion over the play-in tournament, the Knicks are only one game above the No. 5 Hawks and No. 6 Heat. Avoiding the sixth seed is also important because it means they wouldn’t have to face either the Sixers, Nets or Bucks in the first round.
But with the way the Knicks continue to defy expectations, they never feel like a task is too daunting.
“I think in the beginning of the year we thought we could compete with anybody,” Randle said. “And now we feel like we can beat anybody.”
