Head coach Tom Thibodeau finally fulfilled the wishes of Knicks fans around the world by benching Elfrid Payton and inserting Derrick Rose into the starting lineup in Game 3. Surely this would fix the slow starts and give the Knicks the advantage heading into the pivotal game, right?
Well, about that...
Rose actually helped the Knicks early, scoring 11 points in the first as New York finished the first quarter with an 11-point lead. But then the Knicks followed that up with a pathetic 13-point second quarter as the Hawks took control of the game. Once again, Julius Randle and RJ Barrett were horrific.