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Going into Wednesday’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers, the New York Knicks were struggling as much as their prized rookie, RJ Barrett, was in Las Vegas, going 0-3 in their first three games.
Then, they played the Lakers, who were also 0-3 leading up to Wednesday, but had far less talent than the Knicks, whose summer league squad features three of their projected regular season starters. The Lakers lost 117-96.
The Knicks were led by second-year forward Kevin Knox, who poured on 25 points in 24 minutes to go along with seven rebounds and three assists. Just behind Knox was Barrett, who tallied a career-high 21 points and 10 rebounds. Going into Wednesday’s game, Barrett was averaging 11.2 points per game on 28 percent shooting from the field.
Barrett and Knox’s success is going to be key to whatever playoff ambitions the Knicks have, as will the contributions by second-year center Mitchell Robinson, who gave the Lakers’ undersized frontcourt a ton of problems on Wednesday. He ended the night with 13 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks.
Zach Norvell Jr. was one of the few bright spots for the Lakers, putting up 20 points on and efficient 6-12 shooting from the field, including 4-7 shooting from behind the 3-point line. Expect him to be the focal point of everything the South Bay Lakers do next season.
With a blowout loss to the Knicks, the Lakers have officially been eliminated for the Las Vegas Summer League tournament. They’ll play one more consolation game before leaving Sin City.
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