The New York Knicks lost at home for the first time this season on Wednesday night and can only hope they didn’t lose Jalen Brunson in the process.
The Knicks could be without Brunson on Friday night, when New York closes out a seven-game homestand by facing the Miami Heat in NBA Cup action.
Both teams were off Thursday after they had winning streaks snapped. The Knicks fell to the Orlando Magic 124-107 to end a five-game streak, and the host Heat fell 130-116 to the Cleveland Cavaliers to end a three-game run of success.
The clash Friday night will be the second game for each club in East Group C play. The Heat earned a 126-108 win over the Charlotte Hornets on Nov. 7 while the Knicks fell to the Chicago Bulls 135-125 on Oct. 31.
The Knicks followed up the loss to the Bulls by winning their next five games by an average margin of 20.2 points. But New York, which played the second game of a back-to-back Wednesday, trailed the Magic nearly wire-to-wire and were down by as many as 21 points.
The Knicks trailed 115-99 with 1:54 left when Brunson landed awkwardly on his right ankle after being fouled by Wendell Carter Jr. on a layup attempt. Brunson split the pair of free throws, which gave him a game-high 31 points, before limping to the locker room.
Brunson was not made available after the game and first-year coach Mike Brown didn’t offer an update other than acknowledging the star point guard, “turned his right ankle.”
New York went 11-6 without Brunson last season, including 9-6 when he was sidelined by a right ankle injury from March 7 to April 5. Brunson is averaging a team-high 28.0 points and 6.5 assists per game after leading the club in both categories each of the previous three seasons.
Brown has relied heavily on Brunson to implement his style on the team in the early going.
“They kicked our (butts) — it’s as simple as that,” Brown said after the Knicks fell to 7-1 at home. “They came out with a physical presence that we didn’t handle well.”
The Heat saw their win streak end following a stunning fourth-quarter collapse against the Cavaliers, who were missing starters Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley and Darius Garland as well as key reserve Jaylon Tyson.
That group combined for 69 points Monday, when Miami still earned a 140-138 overtime win in the opener of the back-to-back between the teams at Cleveland.
The Heat appeared on their way to another win over the Cavaliers when they raced out to a 38-29 lead after the first quarter and carried a 97-93 lead into the fourth. But Cleveland outscored Miami 37-19 over the final 12 minutes, including 26-14 in the last seven minutes.
Sloppiness on both ends of the floor proved costly for the Heat, who set season highs with 21 turnovers and 29 fouls. Miami, which played without center Bam Adebayo (toe) for a fourth straight game, was also out-rebounded 49-44, including 16-4 in the fourth quarter.
“Very bad loss — I mean, that’s a very bad loss,” said Heat guard Norman Powell, who led the Heat with 27 points. “They’re a good team. But when they’re sitting their starters, their go-to guys, that’s when we’ve got to put our stamp on the game and not give them any life.”
