The New York Knicks went into their prime-time Broadway matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night without star Carmelo Anthony, which meant New York needed its role players to step up all over the court.


With Carmelo Anthony out, other players stepped up for the Knicks and nearly pulled off a win over the Thunder (Getty Images).

For Jason Kidd, the majority of the contributions came in an unexpected place: the glass.

Jason found big ways to contribute despite being held scoreless on Thursday as he pulled down a season-high 10 rebounds, dished out three assists and had two big steals. His contributions helped keep the Knicks, who were without Anthony for the second straight game due to a knee injury, in the game.

But a buzzer-beating try by J.R. Smith missed the mark, allowing the Thunder to escape New York with a 95-94 victory.

"It was a hell of a game," Knicks coach Mike Woodson said. "They played their hearts out and played one of the best teams in the league.”

Without their leading scorer, the Knicks fell behind the hot-shooting Thunder early. Oklahoma City controlled the tempo of the game at the outset, outscoring the Knicks 35-26 thanks to 15 first quarter points from Russell Westbrook and although Raymond Felton tallied nine of his own in the first, New York couldn’t keep up.

But Smith, who finished the game with a season-high 36 points, led the Knicks on a ferocious comeback. Smith tallied 18 of his 36 points in the second quarter as New York cut a double-digit OKC lead down to three at the break. The performance of Smith invigorated the Knicks and they came out fired up after trailing the Thunder 59-56 at halftime.

New York’s defense was a major improvement in the second half and they held Oklahoma City to only 16 points in the third period. J-Kidd grabbed four of his 10 rebounds in the third quarter and the Knicks surged ahead by six entering the fourth.


Jason finished with 10 boards, two steals and three dimes in a valiant effort for New York (Getty Images).

Though he was switched down to a bench role last week, No. 5 continues to provide value for the Knicks and went on to play the entire fourth quarter for New York on Thursday.

In the fourth, he yanked down five of the Knicks’ eight boards, fighting to keep possessions alive as both teams struggled from the field, shooting under 40 percent in the final frame. He also had his second steal of the game in the fourth. That theft set up Iman Shumpert for a layup to put New York up by one with under nine minutes to go. It was one of nine lead changes in the final frame and the game was also tied four times.

With his two steals on Thursday, Jason has now recorded 11 steals over his past four games and 12 in five March games as he continues to find a variety of different ways to contribute to the team.

His play in the fourth helped the Knicks keep pace with OKC and though a pair of Kevin Durant free throws put the Thunder up one with 1:38 to go, New York still had multiple chances to win. But Smith missed on a trey with 32.9 to go and again on the mid-range jumper at the buzzer. Despite the loss, center Tyson Chandler noted that his team’s effort in the face of adversity was something to build off.

"I think this game will make us a better team," he said. "We’re a team and any time we suit up we’re going to battle. I thought it was a well-fought game. You win some, you lose some like that. But when you play like that, you accept those."

NEXT UP
Before the Knicks pack their bags for a five-game road trip, they’ll face one more challenge at the Garden on Saturday night.

The Utah Jazz come to MSG for the first of two meetings between the teams over the next two weeks. Following Saturday’s game, New York begins a West Coast swing that will take them to Oakland, Denver, Portland, Los Angeles and finally Utah.

Tip off of Saturday’s home game against the Jazz is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. EST and can be seen nationally on NBA TV and locally on MSG.

RELATED ARTICLES