The Knicks dug themselves into a 3-1 hole, but most of their problems are fixable. They were simply outhustled in all three losses, generated too many costly turnovers, and played horrible defense.
The Heat got to offensive rebounds, to loose balls, they ve got some tough guys that get respect, said swingman RJ Barrett said. They re working hard, getting calls, they re getting rebounds. They re playing hard.
The Heat dominated the Knicks with 13 offensive rebounds in Game 4, including seven in the fourth quarter.
I got to be better, said center Mitchell Robinson. I got to have more energy, more urgency.
We gotta get a body on people, said Thibodeau. They re shooting long. We re running in and the ball was going over our head.
Forward Julius Randle has been playing through a painful ankle injury, which kept him out of Game 1. Randle averages only 18.3 points per game this series while shooting 22.2% from 3-point range.
Randle has drawn the ire of fans for his lackadaisical effort, particularly on defense in Game 4. Randle set the tone early in the first quarter with several poor plays on both ends of the court during the first couple of possessions. Fans knew it was going to be a long night if Randle was arguing with officials over a missed foul call instead of hustling back on defense.
Maybe they want it more, deadpanned Randle after Game 4 s defeat.
I warn y all, this is the most disgusting thread I ll ever make. But I had to watch this twice, and so do you. Because, friends, it was so much worse the second time. The NYK lost by 8, here are the mental and effort lapses responsible. here with a gm4, a thread:
The Strickland (@TheStrickland)
Betting the Knicks/Heat in Game 5With one more victory, the Heat will make NBA history as the first #8 seed to secure a spot in the Eastern Conference finals. The Heat are currently -800 odds to knock out the Knicks and win the series. The Knicks are +550 odds to rally back and win three games in a row to defeat the Heat and advance to the conference finals.
FiveThirtyEight updated its NBA playoffs projection. The Knicks have only a 12% chance to erase their 3-1 deficit and defeat the Heat. The Knicks have a 3% chance to reach the NBA Finals, but only a 1% chance to win the championship.
The Heat have an 88% chance to win this series, according to FiveThirtyEight. They also have a 25% chance to secure a spot in the 2023 NBA Finals with an 11% chance to win the title.
The Heat are only +1400 odds to win the 2022-23 NBA championship, and the Knicks are the long shot on the futures board at +9000 odds.
The Denver Nuggets are the outright favorite to win the championship at DraftKings at +300 odds after taking a 3-2 series lead against the Phoenix Suns (+1100). The Philadelphia 76ers saw a bump in their title odds to +340 after they seized a 3-2 series lead over the Boston Celtics (+400) on Tuesday night. The Los Angeles Lakers are now +340 odds to win the championship after they surged ahead 3-1 in their semifinal series against the defending champion Golden State Warriors (+1600).
In Eastern Conference futures, the Knicks plummeted to +2500 odds, and trail the 76ers (-105), Boston Celtics (+220), and Heat (+330).
