The undermanned Dallas Mavericks added to the New York Knicks‘ misery on Monday, blowing them out 114-97 at American Airlines Center. The Knicks have now lost four in a row and 11 of their last 17, to drop to 25-18.
Karl-Anthony Towns has gotten a lot of the blame for the struggles, and Carmelo Anthony got to see him and the rest of the Knicks in action up close when he attended Saturday’s 106-99 loss to the Phoenix Suns. Anthony noticed that a lot wasn’t right and stated on NBA on NBC before this Mavericks game that Towns is not able to block out the outside noise.
“I’m watching the identity of the team,” Anthony said. “Who’s doing what? Mismatches. Not taking advantage of mismatches. Miscommunication on defensive cues… When it comes to KAT, KAT shot a airball in the fourth the other day. And I yelled at him… ‘It’s over with, leave it alone. Onto the next one.’ And he looked back and said, ‘Aight, I got you OG.’
“But for him to shoot that airball and for him to acknowledge what I said in that moment, you’re thinking about that,” Anthony continued. “You cannot think like that throughout the course of the game when you’re playing basketball, because now you’re worrying about what people are saying about you… He’s thinking all type of things throughout the course of the game.”
This might seem a bit odd, but Tracy McGrady agreed with Anthony as he was making this point. They want Towns to play freely and not think about what anyone else has to say. McGrady also expressed his frustration pregame over how poor the Knicks have been on the defensive end this season.
“The identity is gone,” McGrady said. “Last year, they had an identity. [Tom Thibodeau] was all about defense. It was structured around the defense. We didn’t see KAT out of position like he is in these last 8 to 10 games. We didn’t see [Jalen] Brunson getting blown by. The scheme that Thibs had for this team fit the personnel that they have. And I think they got away from that.”
Anthony and McGrady’s frustrations with the Knicks would only grow once the action commenced. The Mavericks were without the likes of Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, PJ Washington, Dereck Lively II, and Daniel Gafford for this game and still led 75-47 at halftime. It was an absolutely woeful display, and McGrady stated during the halftime show that all isn’t well in that Knicks locker room.
“There is some friction in this locker room that needs to be ironed out,’ McGrady said. “I don’t know who… Something has to be done because this can’t continue.”
Everything seemed to be going well for the Knicks when they won the NBA Cup back on Dec. 16, 2025. Things have gone south ever since, and Jalen Brunson and head coach Mike Brown ripped the team for this latest display. These two need to figure out a way to arrest this slide.
Interestingly, Towns’ name has come up in trade chatter lately, and if they do make a big move, he’s likely going to be the one heading out. The five-time All-Star isn’t having the best of seasons, averaging 21.0 points, 11.6 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 0.9 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game while shooting 46.7% from the field and 35.8% from beyond the arc.
With the Feb. 5 trade deadline being just a couple of weeks away, though, it would be a bit of a surprise if Towns doesn’t end the season as a Knick. It’s more likely that a potential deal gets struck in the offseason.
That, in turn, would give Towns the opportunity to show he is someone worth holding on to. We’ll see the 30-year-old in action next when the Knicks take on the Brooklyn Nets at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday at 7:30 PM.
