Knicks at Trail Blazers
The last thing the struggling New York Knicks need is a trip across three time zones to face the hottest team in the NBA. That’s exactly what they’ll get on Monday when they visit the Portland Trail Blazers, who are riding a 10-game winning streak. The Knicks began their road trip in Washington with a 98-89 setback on Saturday and are losers of five in a row.
New York is without defensive anchor Tyson Chandler due to a broken leg and point guard Raymond Felton has missed the last three contests with a sore back, though star Carmelo Anthony sees bigger issues. “We ain’t playing good basketball right now, and we’ve got to fix it,” he said after Saturday’s loss. The Blazers are on the other end of the spectrum as Wesley Matthews and Nicolas Batum provide solid compliments to the inside-outside combination of LaMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, MSG (New York), CSN Northwest (Portland)
ABOUT THE KNICKS (3-9): New York expected to challenge the Miami Heat and Indiana Pacers but is so far not in that class, and coach Mike Woodson is taking a wait-and-see approach. “You got two starters that are not in uniform,” he told reporters. I don’t know what kind of team we really have. We haven’t had a full deck.” Anthony, who is averaging 29.2 points and 11.8 rebounds during the losing streak, is trying to keep his head up. “It’s a very tough time,” he said Saturday. “This is a time where you could easily put your head down and mope around, but I can’t do that.”
ABOUT THE TRAIL BLAZERS (12-2): Portland overcame a double-digit deficit in the third quarter to take down the Golden State Warriors on the road on Saturday, surviving a pair of key ejections after a skirmish in the third. “I thought (the altercation) brought us together,” coach Terry Stotts said. “I thought everybody was sticking up for everybody.” That cohesiveness is making the Trail Blazers a dangerous team, and it was Aldridge sticking up for his teammates on the court late. The forward collected 30 points and 21 rebounds in the win and is averaging 22.3 and 9.6.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Portland took both meetings last season and has won seven of the last 10 in the series.
2. The Blazers’ winning streak is the longest for the franchise since a 13-game stretch in Dec. 2007.
3. New York G J.R. Smith is averaging 18 points over the last three games.