The New York Knicks felt 22 in the worst way possible in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against the Philadelphia 76ers.
New York jumped out to a 22-point lead in the opening period but the 76ers both erased and surpassed it before the first half let out, creating a 54-51 lead at halftime at Wells Fargo Center.
Beyond his barred heroics in Game 2, Donte DiVincenzo had struggled to meet his regular season production, failing to reach even mere double-figures in four of the first five games. He even lost some of the witching hour minutes to Miles McBride. This time, though, DiVincenzo was the major force behind the Knicks' first period surge and even contributed two blocks to the cause. The major theme of this Knicks season has been different heroes rising to the occasion. Is DiVincenzo poised to make his debut in that department in the second half?
Tom Thibodeau has proven on many an occasion that he can truly stand as the "coach" of the year and not simply the overseer of a tem that exceeded expectations. But will pride wind up being his downfall? Even with Joel Embiid free throw harvesting and both Isaiah Hartenstein and Mitchell Robinson flirting with foul trouble, Precious Achiuwa has been nailed to the bench, as the Knicks continue to work with a mere seven-man set. Thibodeau has made it clear he's comfortable with an exclusive two-man set when it comes to big men, but if they want to stop Embiid, breaking that rule may be the only hope. Achiuwa held Embiid to a single point in the final period of the victrious fourth game. His reward shouldn't be exile.
As it's been made clear time and time again, the Knicks can survive scoring outbursts from Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. The latter's 1-of-6 statline would hint at disaster for Philadephia, but the bench, namely the unexpected efforts of Buddy Hield, has come up big: completely eschewed from the last two games, Hield has 17 points and is an astonishing plus-17 when he's on the floor. Nicolas Batum also added 10, contributing to Philadelphia's whopping 30-0 advantage in scoring over the Knicks' meager bench of McBride and Robinson.
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