RJ Barrett puts up another dud as Knicks take loss to Bucks
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RJ Barrett could use a reliable jump shot under the Christmas tree.
The Knicks forward continued his rancid stretch Saturday by missing 12 of his 17 attempts with just one assist, as the Knicks were again humbled by the Bucks and bombarded by treys in a 130-111 defeat at MSG.
“I thought that every aspect of the game, we were a step behind,” coach Tom Thibodeau said.
In his past six games, Barrett, the highest Knicks draft pick since Patrick Ewing, connected on just 36.7 percent of his field goals and 20.8 percent of his threes.
His dud Saturday helped waste a 36-point gem from Jalen Brunson (which followed the point guard’s 45-point effort against the Bucks last month), though, as Josh Hart noted, the Knicks failed in the only category that mattered.
“Stats don’t really mean s–t when we’re losing,” Hart said. “You can’t play for stats, you can’t be so consumed with stats. And obviously we’re in New York. You’re going to be talked about. You’re going to be talked about well when you have good stats. When you have bad stats, you’re going to be talked about badly. But at the end of the day, you can’t play for stats.”
After starting this campaign on a tear, Barrett’s efficiency has plummeted and is back to around his career average.
The migraine issue from November, which should’ve only briefly derailed Barrett’s season, can no longer be used as an excuse.
Barrett’s slump is extended.
Over the last 16 games, he’s averaging just 16.4 points while shooting less than 39 percent overall and 26 percent on 3s.
“Just stay focused,” advised Julius Randle, who has also endured his ups and downs with the Knicks. “Don’t let your frustration overtake the reality of what’s really going on. Stay focused. Focus on the process each day. Don’t worry about what happened last game or the game before. Whatever it is, take that frustration, use it, work your ass off and the results will follow.”
With a chance to cut the deficit to single digits early in the fourth quarter, Barrett missed consecutive floaters in the lane.
He then nailed a couple shots in garbage time, making Barrett’s statline — 13 points in 29 minutes — look better than its reality.
“We’re talking to him to stay confident in himself, continue to do what he does,” Brunson said. “The ball not going in the rim is part of the game. How you bounce back from it is just your confidence.”
Barrett has never lacked confidence. The efficiency of his offense has been his greatest hindrance.
“You need some easy baskets. You get some easy baskets, that usually gets you going a little bit,” Thibodeau said, “And so, as a team, we didn’t move without the ball. We didn’t run the floor the way we normally do. We need those hustle points. … And we also missed some wide-open shots. Gotta make your open shots.”
The defeat snapped a two-game winning streak for the Knicks (16-12), with owner James Dolan, wearing Christmas antlers, in a festive spirit in his baseline seat.
And though Barrett’s performance Saturday was the worst offensively from the Knicks (Immanuel Quickley and Hart were also in the running), the team defense was again a major issue.
The sharpshooting Bucks (22-7), who’ve already defeated the Knicks thrice and return to MSG for a Christmas matchup, buried 16 3-pointers on 32 attempts.
It was the third time the Bucks punished the Knicks from long distance, hitting at least 50 percent in their matchups. Tom Thibodeau will need a different game plan — or better closeouts from his players — by Christmas.
“They’ve got a lot of weapons. So, you gotta fly around. There’s times where we did it, times we didn’t do it as well as we should have.”
Bobby Portis, the former Knick, scored an energetic 23 points off the Bucks bench. Giannis Anetotokounmpo added 28 points, as Khris Middleton, Dame Lillard, and Malik Beasley combined for 48 with 10 treys.
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