Thunder Seek to Stay Hot, Knicks Ready for a Friday Night Battle
The Oklahoma City Thunder will be playing the New York Knicks in New York this Friday, January 10th at 7:30 p.m. EST. This will surely be a fierce matchup; the two teams faced each other only this past week, with the Thunder coming out on top at their home court, winning 117-107. “This feels like a playoff game,” said commentators covering the game. The Knicks are ranked third in the Eastern Conference with a 24-13 record, while the Thunder are currently first in the Western Conference, holding a 30-5 record. The Thunder have won the last four of five games against the Knicks. This type of matchup is especially interesting to watch since both teams appear to have strong “brotherly” rapport within, which only fuels competition as they oppose each other.
Why the Thunder Have an Advantage
The Thunder are currently on a 10-game winning streak, beating teams like the Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Memphis Grizzlies along the way. Despite losing forward Chet Holmgren earlier in the season, this hasn’t stalled the Thunder’s rampage. In their last meeting, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander contributed 33 points and seven assists and Jalen Williams put up 20 points. The Thunder’s X-factor outside of Gilgeous-Alexander has been Jalen Williams, who is so strong and incredibly versatile everywhere on the court. Isaiah Hartenstein also posted four points, 14 rebounds, and seven assists, and Aaron Wiggins had a clutch late-game performance, scoring 14 points in the fourth quarter alone. Although every starter on the Knicks contributed an impressive stat line, the notable difference between the two teams was their bench productions, with the Knicks only getting seven points from their bench compared to the Thunder’s 27 points. Miles McBride of the Knicks, a key player off the bench, is currently dealing with a hamstring injury and is questionable to play this Friday. His presence would certainly boost the Knicks’ performance.
How the Knicks Can Win
The Knicks can win by limiting fatigue and cleaning up aspects of their game such as preventing turnovers and making free throws. The Knicks need to get more bench movement, if not to contribute on offense, then to provide fresh legs on defense to prevent late-game runs by the Thunder. They would also benefit from increasing their efficiency from the three-point line as well, having gone 28% from the three-point line compared to the Thunder’s 52% in their last matchup. Luckily, Mikal Bridges is no longer struggling with his shot compared to early on in the season, and Karl-Anthony Towns, one of the Knicks’ best three-point shooters, just needs to attempt more three-pointers, considering he did not even attempt one in their last matchup.
