In triple-doubles, LeBron James remains the king of Madison Square Garden

good news for LeBron James : his big night was not overshadowed by the defeat. Indeed, the author of a triple-double with 28 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in the dazzling speed of “King James” also became the sole owner of the fourth place in the ranking of the best passers in history. Lakers After a poorly managed fourth-quarter “money time” at Madison Square Garden, it pulled away in overtime, Knicks attractive.

Because this New York team, which got off to a very poor start (2/16 shooting) and often passed up two or three possessions at most afterward, didn’t really give up. Especially in the last minute, the New Yorkers erased the 6-point deficit in a few seconds. Jalen Brunson uncatchable, grasping the extension.

But an offense that is too static and predictable, often resulting in a simple “pick and roll” between Jalen Brunson and Jalen Brunson. Julius Randle then an isolation for one of the two that cost them the win in overtime, not the most innovative offensively against the Lakers, true, but in the end more effective, LeBron James and Anthony Davis folding the match with decisive baskets.

WHAT TO REMEMBER

– LeBron James, a little further in history, a little closer to the top. First, the King moved into fourth place in league history with 10,338 career assists after 11 on the same night, passing Mark Jackson and Steve Nash. Chris Paul (11,246 assists) and third in his sights. “LBJ” later fell short of 100 points before scoring 28 points to break Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s all-time scoring record. More than exactly 89 points before the tie, then exceeded the 38,387 units of the former icon of the Bucks and Lakers.

– A final possession that left the Knicks reeling. Indeed, at -6 (114-108) early in the final minute, just as they were close to giving up their guns, Tom Thibodeau’s men stormed back, down by just three, to the Purple and Gold. Decisive basket from Jalen Brunson. In the back, the Knicks leader even caused the pass to Anthony Davis in effect, thus offering his people the opportunity to plant the “game winner” with a little more than four seconds left on the clock. It was nothing short of an isolated caricature for Julius Randle, who came to impale himself on a two-man play between LeBron James and Anthony Davis at the end of a timeout in New York. a shot… Not a move off the ballnot a screen that doesn’t carry, just a predictable isolation: there was something better on that last possession that could have saved the Knicks from a stretch that seemed doomed to lose in this “money-for-money” sense. time” was discussed in the breakup.

TOPS & FLOPS

✅ Anthony Davis. Like all the interiors that have faced the Knicks since Mitchell Robinson’s injury ten days ago, Anthony Davis had fun against the young and naive Jericho Sims before rolling up his sleeves a bit more against the more solid and experienced Isaiah Hartenstein. But overall, “AD” dominated in the paint and mostly near the rim, putting up 27 points and 9 rebounds and 2 steals on the defensive end.

✅ Rui Hachimura. It is only his fourth game with him Angelinos, the Japanese winger was the team’s X-factor, the third most important player behind the James-Davis duo for Los Angeles. Starting off the first quarter especially well, the former Washington forward consistently brought good volume throughout the match, finishing with 19 points and 9 rebounds.

✅ Jalen Brunson. The best player ever on the Knicks side. Aggressive from the first minute to the last without ever letting up, perhaps a little too greedy (13/29), always aware of the right pass to make, the New York leader was especially strong, notching two decisive baskets. including the end of the match floating The equalizer could have been match point if his team had negotiated the final possession better, before an attacking foul on Anthony Davis seconds later… All that was missing was a win for a perfect evening, and we can easily imagine that the former Villanova must be disappointed not to cap off such a good performance (37 points and 6 assists) when he just finished a career-best month (28.7 points, 4.1 rebounds and 5.1 assists, including 48% shooting). 45% from behind the arc in January).

✅ Immanuel Quickley and Isaiah Hartenstein. The extension would not have happened without the contribution of two substitutes who were very, very valuable during this match. In an often predictable offense between Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle, the duo off the bench raised the ceiling for the Knicks, first with the usual spark on offense (19 points and 8 assists), and second with a big presence under the panels, 16 for rival Anthony Davis points and 13 rebounds (including 7 offensive!) with a huge double-double, while poor Jericho Sims was eaten alive (0 points and 4 fouls in 13 minutes) . Subs are rarely satisfying for the Knicks, but Quick and Hart certainly got the job done in this matchup.

✅⛔️ Julius Randle. The mixed evening was disappointing even for the Knicks power forward, who certainly had 23 points and 12 rebounds, but was unconvincing with his body language and especially his defensive presence. After this weekend’s loss against the Nets, it’s the second straight time we’ve seen that feeling from No. 30, who has been a little less sharp since his very good performance in Boston.

NEXT

– Knicks (27-25): Reception of heat, from Thursday to Friday night (01:30).

– Lakers (24-28): Pacers visit, Thursday to Friday night (01h).