There was a great deal to hate about the Knicks’ 116-113 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers. The supposedly formidable Knick defense gave up 70 points in the first half, and they trailed by 20 for much of the contest. The defensive dynamo that is Elfrid Payton (sarcasm alert) couldn’t stop Damian Lillard, who had 15 points in the first quarter. That rascally ex-Knick Enes Kanter thoroughly out-played Mitchell Robinson and even played some good defense on Julius Randle.
But forget all of that for a moment, and let us focus on Immanuel Quickley. Pretty much every Knicks fan has been calling for Quickley to start, and on Sunday night he showed why by nearly sparking a 20-point comeback with an insane 31-point performance.