Knicks at Nuggets | Opening Monologue | POSTGAME RECAP

0:00Another test for the next tonight in Denver and another statement win for New York. It is their largest margin of victory ever at the mile high city. And as the final horn sounds, the next blow out the nuggets again. 142-103 to start this five-game road trip. We've been tracking it. 3-point shooting is so important to who they are. They knocked down 16-3s in this ballgame. The rebounding number 50 boards to 31 boards and of course 14 offensive rebounds. And you've got scoring up and down the roster. What a terrific team win. Okay, so they're a little likable. Welcome to the next full school post game show presented by Fanatic Sportsbook where we are. Yeah, we are rolling. This team in this fucking team, what a crazy season it's been. What a crazy season it's been because it really has had it all.

1:06And I think it's, you know, the more I've been doing this this year, the more I've started to kind of connect this team to last year's team and kind of group those two, things as one, even though there are some obvious differences. And I'm just going to say right off the bat that since this team was assembled in the way it is in the summer of 2024. And honestly, we could go back further than that. We could just go back to like the entire Leon Rose era. And like, I mean, we could go back further than that. I don't want to get too crazy right off the bat. I don't know. I don't know that I have seen a Nick team playing as well as this team is playing right now at this very moment. No caveats, no, you know, no, no time stamps. The way the Nixer player right now with absolute control over what they want to do at both ends of the floor.

2:17Pretty much at all times that they are out there against some of the absolute tip top competition in the NBA. You know, we can just keep it to this this era, the Leon Rose era, you know, considering January 2024. That team that we we have fine memories of obviously considering even at times they were rolling last year. You could even go back to when they won the NBA Cup in December. I don't think we've seen anything quite like this. And I think that's the only appropriate place to start because it is now I should start marking like BC and AD before crash out. And after after after demise, I don't know. And since like, yeah, obviously they haven't gone undefeated since that piston game out of the break.

3:21They had a pretty rough outing in Cleveland against Cavaliers. They obviously lost their most recent game to Oklahoma City. But there is something about how this team is playing right now that is undeniable. And yes, obviously getting a 39 point win in Denver, one uping their 38 point win in Denver from November of 2024. It certainly helps a lot. I don't think anything that I'm saying is about tonight specifically, I think just tonight serves as good a time as I need to commemorate what it is that we are witnessing because the turnaround from where this team is. From where this thing was in early January, when obviously it looked like they were never going to win another game again and they put forth some of the absolutely most. Dispirating, despondent, depressing performances that we talk about things from this era of this era of the Leon Rose era.

4:25Again, we're not talking about this is a turnaround from two years ago. And yeah, then they reeled off a lot of wins in a row and then something about that night coming out of the all star break, I think I look, I know just because I heard from people. I wasn't the only one who felt the way I felt about that night and that night made me feel the way about this team based on again, a year and a half sort of evidence. So for them to do what for me is a 180 and play this level of basketball. I mean, I could just sit here and wax poetic in the way that I am for the entire monologue, but I want to get on to actually talking about the basketball game. So I'm going to come myself off, but like we have to acknowledge what it is that we're seeing. We have to acknowledge what it is that we're seeing. We have to acknowledge how well they're playing, the effort that they're playing with. How much these offensive possessions, it feels like they are getting whatever they want, whatever they want.

5:28And I know this is going to be an OGN and OB post game as it should, but I think the first guy I have to give credit to is Mike Brown tonight. Because I look at tips was fired. I said I thought it was a move that they had to make for a variety of reasons. The Mike Brown era, I think has gone well. I had been going well, even with the tumult of two and nine and some of the more the spiraling losses for sure. But it really does feel like this guy had a season long plan that he was slowly putting the pieces in place for something that I think is coming to fruition right now. In which they are executing on again, it's not just on offense. I mean, the Denver Nuggets barely clear at 100 points and they ended up with 103. Same number as Oklahoma City got the other night. And that was with the best player in the world looking as good as you're ever going to see that do look.

6:31Like it is both ends. And they know exactly what the, how do you judge a great team? You don't judge a great team by whether the shots are falling. You don't judge a great team by how their best players are able to go one-on-one and make tough buckets. You judge a great team, a great team, you know they are playing great when it's all the puzzle pieces fit. And it doesn't matter who's in the game, but everything just goes together. And it looks like everybody is on the same page as everyone else. And you have to have not only the execution, not only have to have a mastery of the game plans, but you have to have extraordinary amount of effort. And that's the other thing this team is playing with. So I just, all right, I'm going to call myself off. Because again, I told you I could go on a whole monologue just saying a whole lot of nothing other than this team rocks right now. But let's get into some specifics. And I actually want to start with Nikola Yokic. And I'm going to, I'm going to watch in the NBA for 33 years, 93, 94 was my first real season watching the team.

7:42You know, that's too, as the case for anybody who probably watches the sport over that period of time. Best two players I've seen over that time are Michael Jordan, LeBron James. Nikola Yokic is in that group. He's third in that group, but he's third. He is in the group. He is in the group with those two guys. And I think you could watch Nikola Yokic play basketball for weeks. We not see him have a more dominant performance inside the arc than he did tonight. I think he missed one shot from two point range and then up with 38 points on 21 shots. Finally got a three to go at the end there. And again, top three player of my lifetime watching this sport operating at the absolute peak of his powers. The best player on the floor. And it was not close. Because OGN and OB, like, he was teammates with Kawaii Leonard once.

8:49And I think there was some about that experience, even though they only shared the floor for one year. Obviously, it was a very successful year, early in OG's career. But I think ever since then, that is the guy that in his mind, he compares himself to. And he puts himself up against and that look, these are professional athletes. They're all super confident. I really have very little doubt that in OG's mind, he thinks that if he had the proper opportunity, he could absolutely do what Kawaii does on a regular basis. And tonight he was every bit of Kawaii Leonard and then some. I don't know what it is about the air in Denver. I don't know, maybe it's some. He likes the hotel room that they, they're the hotel they stay in when they go to Denver, whatever it is. Some about this place agrees with him. And I'll just read the stat line. 34 points, seven, seven rebounds, five assists, four steals, one block, zero turnovers.

9:51And six of 11 from deep. And he just went on. It was a stretch in the third quarter. He was just throwing it up. It didn't matter what he threw up, it was going it. When OG Annanobi plays like this, you can't beat the next. You really can't. And I can say that with confidence because the next best player tonight shot three at 13 from the field. I mean, one by 39 points, you know, and I understand Jalen Brunson had actually what I would call a very good game despite the fact that he shot three at 13 ended up with 15 assists. Everybody who played significant minutes had, I would say a really good game for the team. But you really all five starters, you know, all them very good performances and Mitchell Robinson right up there with those five in terms of like just exceptional play. But OG, just different level, different level for him. And this is a level that he could reach sometimes we've seen it before.

10:52Look, he's not the sort of player that you expect to get this from on any sort of regular basis. But it is kind of cool to know that the guy who is the next third best player has this in his bag sometimes. And what I love about OG and I've kind of been speaking about this recently and I've kind of I had a feeling that something like I don't know if I felt like this was coming. But I've said it over the last couple of times that I've been in front of the mic. OG, it's not like one game on one game off. Couple of hot ones, couple of cold ones. When he gets going, he gets going. And you felt it even with the 413 from three against Oklahoma City. You felt it was coming, you felt the confidence starting to build in him. He has had, you know, a couple of down stretches this year. And so I think now he's just he's on one and he's hopefully he's on one for the rest of the season. So kudos to OG and it'll be for absolutely dominating this basketball game.

11:53But you know, win by 39 in Denver on a night when the best player in the world is operating at the peak of his powers without contributions from every single player on the roster. And we could start going through those right now. And I think the guy that I personally want to go to next is Carl Anthony Towns. Because I've kind of echoed this sentiment on some recent post games. I will say it again here. What he has done since the break is without question the biggest development as I'm watching on the MSG post game show him. The play where he took Aaron Gordon off the dribble and finished it with a thunderous dunk in the second quarter back when this was actually still a basketball game. But it's it was more than just one play. He is finally doing some of the things that we have been wanting him to do.

12:55Again, it hasn't been like super, super consistent. We really didn't get much of this against OKC. But again, OKC is a very unique beast in this league. But cat put up three tonight, which you like to see even though they made one. You never like to see games where cat doesn't put up three put up four made one. But most importantly, using his physical presence inside the arc and really making it a point to punish Denver anytime he had what he considered to be a mismatch. And they put some different defenders on him. He made absolute mincemeat out of them. And he did it from at the top of the top of the arc. He did it from inside. Again, I know we only got seven field goals. And one of those was the three only shot three free throws. I thought towns was at the absolute peak of his powers in this game. And it's I said it after the last game. I mean, I was like, there's a little bit left that I still want to see. There's a little bit more that I want to see them build into the offense to feature a guy that we know is good enough to be featured on a great offense.

14:04And I thought they did a great job of that tonight. Again, the fact that he only finished with 17 points or whatever. I don't care. He was dominant. And so he gets the next building after OG. And then from there. I'm going to go in a lot of different directions. We can certainly talk about Josh Hart who. I know some fans were frustrated at the start of the game. Nick spotted Denver in 11 to 2 lead when the starters went out. Denver was up 13 to 8. I don't know what it is about Josh Hart. I say this because someone who was basketball opinion, I respect very much. Texted me in the middle of the first quarter, surely maybe seeing some of the discourse. That happened as a result of the starters starting off slowly. And just asked me like, why does so many Nick fans hate Josh Hart? And I won't chair what I said in response. But there is something about him. And when this starting unit gets, you know, is not firing on all solos.

15:09Again, they were, they, they got some good looks, I think. But it was not, you know, it was a different, it was different from what we saw from the rest of the game. And I just think there, there is something about it when that group doesn't function properly. And when Hart maybe either gets opportunities to take advantage of, we could feel his presence out there, whatever the case may be, that really just twists a certain type of fan up in, in knots. And I, I get the frustration. I understand the frustration because again, I'm obviously in the pro Josh Hart camp. Even I get a little frustrated. The part that I think is worth remembering is that this guy impacts winning in so many ways. And it is just, it is awfully convenient how often that gets forgotten when the team goes through a little bit of a rough patch out of the gate with the starters in there.

16:11And I think it just happens because it's the first thing you're seeing in the basketball game. It's not a stretch that comes in the middle of the second quarter or the third quarter. It's the very first thing that you're seeing. And you see it. And then you forget that, oh, wait, Josh Hart tonight, 18 points and eight of 12 shots. You know, five rebounds, couple assists, really impactful in a lot of different ways. You forget it. And I, you know, I just, it would be nice if people didn't forget it quite as, quite as readily. Because this guy is such an important player for them. And I lost count of the amount of winning plays that he made tonight. And oh, by the way, I threw these stats in the next Phil School newsletter today. Shout out to all my people on, on Substack that, yeah, the starters numbers overall have gone down. If you look at the starting units net rating, it's about even in the first quarter. It's not good in the second quarter. It's negative something or other. They are flat out dominant in the second half. Like this starting unit in the second half of games.

17:14I think that's about 160 or so minutes under their bell 170 minutes under their belt. And they're like, they're destroying teams in second half. You go look up the numbers on the NBA comms lineup page. It's, I forget if it's like plus 18 or plus 10 or 12 or 15 or something in the second half. Like it's dominant. So again, it's not this unit and sure enough starters at the end of the second quarter. Outscored Denver 8 to three starters at the beginning of the third quarter looked awfully good. It's not the unit. Something happens to this team. I think out of the gate. I don't know what it is. I wish I knew what it is. I'm sure Mike Brown wished you knew what it was. But awesome stuff from Josh Hart. Really solid two way game from the Cal bridges. Like I talked about Jalen Bronson 15 assists for the second consecutive game. You know, you love to see him really still being a positive force and helping his team. And boy oh boy does he continue to fight on the defensive end.

18:17And then again, everybody was good tonight. Muhammad Diawara with my favorite tip in of the season. You know, Alvarado continues to inject something very important that this team needs. You know, Landry Shamit. It's only had a couple of threes. But I thought there were important threes. There were early threes when this game was still very much endowed. And then Mitchell Robinson. Only ended up with 13 points. Nine in the first quarter. I think he had. Might add all 13 pretty early. 13 points at 14 minutes. You want to talk about making an impact in your in your time. Five rebounds for on the offensive glass. Just an absolute classic high impact in a short amount of time. Mitchell Robinson game. And yeah, I mean, just everything you could possibly want to see from the next tonight. I think you saw. You saw them battle back from an early deficit. You saw them with stands and real punches from Denver.

19:17I mean, again, it's crazy because the final deficit ended up being. Or the final margin of victory ended up being 39 points. But like. Denver was because yo can just wouldn't let go of the row because he's that good. Denver like this was like, you know, 11 12 13 points for like most of the third quarter. And the nicks just would have none of this ever becoming a basketball game. And you could tell me like obviously Murray went out. You could tell me the nuggets stink on defense because they kind of do. And you could tell me they had a really cold night from three. And I'll respond like all that's fair. I think the next defense I'd a lot to do with the fact that the nuggets are had a cold night from the like. At what point do the nicks get the benefit of the doubt that other teams get when teams just so happen to shoot poorly from deep against them? Could it be because their defense put so much pressure on the opposing team that when teams do get a semi. Open or even just like a not fully contested look from deep.

20:19The pressure is on them like their defense is operating at such a high level right now. I have to think any team that is going against them is just feeling an immense amount of pressure to make everything. Any time they get a sliver a daylight. And a lot of those three they didn't really have that much daylight. Again, the coverage, the close outs, the screen navigation and just forget screen navigation. Just the way this team is battling through screens on defense. And that's why there is there is nobody who is undeserving of for like Alvarado, Shamit. Like these guys, Diwara, these guys are fighting. Fighting through every screen. Like there are no more lazy close outs. There are no more sloppy close outs. Like all of the teas are crossed. All of the eyes are dotted. I don't know how else to say it. Everything you want to see from this basketball team right now. You're seeing. And that allowed Mike Brown to go ahead and put his bench in with eight minutes in change to go.

21:20It allowed them to have a relatively low impact stress free night in arguably the toughest place to play in the NBA. Brunson played the most minutes at 34 OG played 32. No other starter played more than 27. You love to see that with the back of back in LA coming up in a couple of days. So I thought that was obviously fantastic. What did I miss? I don't think I miss that. I mean, just. You really just can't say enough about it. I mean, like. 142 points. Pretty good. 44 assists. They've only gotten more than that twice in the entire history of their franchise. They got 45 twice. Once against Cleveland in 1979. And once guess where in Denver. Last November when OGN and OB said his career high. That was the those are the only two times I've got more than 44 assists in a basketball game.

22:20And they got 44 tonight. Largest win over Denver, you know, again, one more than that game last November. It's everything you want. It's everything you want from this team. And I mean, I'm just. It's really fun to watch them right now. I don't know what to say. It's really fun to watch them right now. I am officially highly anticipating what they're able to do. Not only the rest of the regular season, but obviously in the playoffs. Because they're going to play like this man. And oh, that's the last thing. I knew there was so much I wanted to end them before I went to I went to the rest of the show. And shout out to Sean with a W who has been all over this for this entire season. At some point, I think we need to stop the narrative that the East is the little brother conference.

23:20Because all I see are the next continuing to win all sorts of basketball games. And guess what? They can't make up any ground on the standings. And they can't even really pull away from Cleveland, who was behind them. Because the top four of the East are just like continuing to be dominant. I mean, why you look at the West and like, yeah, OK, C is OK. See, great. We've always acknowledging that like San Antonio, well, took care of them twice this year. Denver took care of them twice this year. Houston and looked all that impressive recently. Lakers, they barely have a positive point differential on the season. And Minnesota's the one team there. They're like, you know, you respect them because they're stealing is so high. But even that team is not like completely without its flaws. So like you look at it and it's like, all right. I think at least four of the best eight teams are in the East. You could argue four of the best seven teams are in the East.

24:21You might be able to argue four of the best six teams are in the East. It's not crazy. So again, we got to start talking about the conferences this year in a way that is realistic and respectful. Because at some point, the sample sizes that we're seeing from these supposed heavy hitters are what they are. And you can only escape that shit for so long. So that's the last thing that I wanted to say. The New York Knicks, the likable New York Knicks. I echo Jonathan Macri's sentiments, get the Western conference up out of here. We are a fairly officiated game from a perfect week, ladies and gentlemen. And Jonathan, I say this on behalf and not just to you, but to anybody else that crashed out after Detroit, all 40% of you, you're welcome back. Welcome back to the community. Because you're now rooting for a contender in the Eastern conference in the East. You're rooting for a contender. Bill Simmons, adjust your rankings. Sir, Joe House, you are welcome in MSG any time.

25:24And yeah, shout out to Yokech who looked more like the Joker once you took away the three to two point ball tonight. Third greatest player ever. Third, third, third highest blowout of the season. That's right. Six have two bigger blowouts than the one you saw. It denser. Why? That's right. Jonathan. Oh, man, Mark, that was fun. That was so much. It was a lot of fun. You know what's fun? It's been so fun. The last few weeks ever since the crash out. I got to say like it's. It's. I said on the timeline is BC before crash out. I like that. Yeah. I got to think of a good, a good D for, for AD. No, I said it. Anything of a good what? Oh, God. I said it at the top of the following monologue when I was joking. Obviously, you're welcome. I, I, I will. There's always interesting things that I am looking forward to seeing come out after a season is over.

26:26I wonder. What, what, what? If anything happened about like after that night, you know, not. We know what happened. What? You crashed out. Yeah. They saw it. I said, all kidding aside. You motivated the team. Nick's film school motivated the team. That's clearly it. We take credit for that. Here at Nick's film school. We said it after the Houston come back. We motivate. I know. I know. You're welcome is how we should start these things. I was wrong. I jumped to conclusions. No. You're welcome. New York. Next. You normally come up to music, Andrew. You should queue up the rock song. So two things. You know what? What can I say? Except you're welcome. So here's the problem, Mark. Copyrights a thing. And they let us know the last time. Shout it to the fine folks at journey. I will say you're not messing with Disney. With a, with a lot of song. I will just say there was a song I was considering. Who was that at the Jeremy Cohen?

27:27Reports from my pre game show guest. Brendan would vote who's from the DNA Nuggets super at the All-city Sports Network. He reported that the next locker room is right behind Where they do the press conference. And he said, that's a great song. The song that was being played was Natasha Bettingfield unwritten. Lasting shout out to Jeremy Cohen who said it when he was responding to John being like their season is still unwritten. It's great song. It is a great song. You and David Adam and Jeremy and the Knicks apparently agree. It's a great song. I have always ever more of an indication this team is entirely too online. It's that, but it's that we clearly have an effect on the New York Knicks. It's that. So there you go. Maybe the Knicks whisperers right here. Well, look, they've checked every box, you know, I guess other than the trip box,

28:31they've checked every box. And I again, I would love to know what if anything happened after the game. I would bet anything that they are excited to get another shot at those guys. You know, which is obviously they might get it if they lose the Charlotte in the first round. Tough loss for Charlotte. That was a great game against the eat. That don't want to be. And then the Tatum game on the other. Shout out to Jason Tatum. We'll talk a lot of shit against towards Boston and Celtics fans and the whole thing the rest of the way. For that to you to be on the basketball court, whatever it is 10 months after Taren's ACL. That's for Achilles. Insane. Absolutely insane. So yeah, that was a beautiful tribute to the opponent that you so desperately need to respect. Jason Tatum in his return to action tonight for the Boston Celtics finished with 15 points on 16 shots. So inefficient Kobe Bryant basketball has returned to the Boston Celtics.

29:35After the beautiful basketball we saw for the first four and a half months. Congratulations, Jayden. Jason Tatum. We appreciate what we congratulate you for coming back. John is right. That is an admirable, inspiring thing, but also, you know, thank you. So this, this very, I was going to say this Achilles heel that the Celtics have. That's probably a poor, poor choice words. This weakness that the Celtics have when they go to you and all your long twos has welcomed back into my life. So, you know, next and six, as always. Always perpetually. Mark, can you put up the fair play graphic? Poor for the fair play. That's what you mean. No, no, no, fair play. This is, this is why I'm here actually. So here, I'm not doing it for you. I'm sorry. Oh, you're good. You're good. You're good. So the what happened in the game tonight as the Saturday night win. Yes. The small Mary got hurt in the first half and didn't come back. Which means fair play was activated on behalf of our friends at Fanatic Sportsbook. What's that, Mark? I think I actually may have been affected by this.

30:37Really? Well, so just Jay, but I, I had a Jamal Murray, that part of life. And he went down with 148 left in the first half counts. It was at the end. It's any first half injury. It activates fair play. As long as the player doesn't return to action in the second half, which he didn't because it's obviously they're being cautious and obviously the nicks were they can belt to ask. So yo, I, I can attest that this. This is for real. I know a fair place. Yeah, no, it's legit. They're the only, nobody does it better than them. There you go. That exports book is like head and shoulders for everybody else where they take care of people when something bad happens. It's out of the heaven. Yes, shout out to shout out to who? It was in the Kevin who was on our, John's. Oh, yeah, the guy from the break. Yes, the guest. That's a Kevin. As a reminder, as a reminder, fanatic sports books, fair play, injury protection covers all first half injuries.

31:37That's why there's no better place to bet. And tonight, that proved it in Denver when Jamal Murray went down when Denver lost their all-star point guard and it activated. So if you, Jeff, the example I was going to use, Jeff, for his best one for his betting and sweating picks tonight, took a Jamal Murray op bet, which voids out. He doesn't lose anything. He doesn't get credit for the points. But had he put real money on it, you would not have lost any money on it. So shout out to the fanatic sports book, the only people that do this, winning hints different here. Must be 21 or older, gambling problem called 1-800-Gamber, Connecticut called 888-789-7777.

32:44Massachusetts called 800-327-5-05-0. New York called 877-8-HOPE-NY. Maryland visit mdgamblinghelp.org, not available in all states, terms apply, see the fanatic sports book app.