Game Preview: Knicks vs. Trail Blazers- 03/16/22

The New York Knicks finally head home after a punishing seven-game road trip. They finished a respectable 3-4, though “respectable” doesn’t really move the needle at this point in a lost season. The Knicks are also coming off two consecutive close, heartbreaking losses, which is par for the course these days.

Our guys suffered one of their most embarrassing losses of the season at the hands of Wednesday’s opponent, the extremely tanking Portland Trail Blazers. Anfernee Simons scored 30 points as the Knicks blew a big lead to a team that had traded away most of their NBA-caliber players. The Blazers are in MSG tonight, but Simons is not — he is out for a few weeks with a knee issue. You know what that means?

The Knicks are favored to win! I can’t remember the last time this happened! In fact, they’re favored BIG — -12.5 points at the time of posting, according to DraftKings. With Simons out, their starting lineup will probably look like this:

Trendon Watford

Josh Hart

Brandon Williams

Drew Eubanks

CJ Ellerby

That’s quite a lineup — Josh Hart and four guys who definitely exist! But the Knicks can ill afford to take the Blazers (or any team) lightly. Portland recently defeated the Wizards, who still sit ahead of New York in the standings. They also played Atlanta tough in their most recent game. Hart scored 23 the last time he played the Knicks, and he recently went off for 46 points in a game.

Wednesday’s game is at 7:30 PM EST on MSG. Don’t screw this one up, Knicks!

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