The Knicks hangover after the negotiation deadline lasted just three-quarters before they woke up and rallied fiercely in the fourth quarter for a 106-102 victory over the Wizards in the field Thursday.
After a horrible first half, RJ Barrett scored the comeback with 24 points the night Julius Randle was not himself.
And Alec Burks (27 points, 15 in the fourth), rookie Immanuel Quickley (16 points) and Taj Gibson brought sand and scored from the bench after the Knicks were 60-45 at the break and with 11 after three quarts.
The Knicks beat Washington 39-24 in the final period. Barrett’s biggest play came in a quick break when he was tied by Bradley Beal, but ended up with a three-point play after which he flexed his biceps. Barrett was just 7 of 22 at night, but burned the Wizards by nine points in the fourth quarter.
Randle, who injured his thigh in the third quarter, responded in the final two minutes by hitting two baseline jumpers to end the comeback. Randle shot just 5 of 16 for 13 points.
The Knicks were left without their two best defenders on shot Reggie Bullock and center Nerlens Noel. And they were also without their usual 1-2 punch on offense to Randle and Barrett during the first three quarters.
The Knicks were flatter than Kyrie Irving’s Land in the first half, but their increase in the second half from a 17-point deficit moved them above 500-23-22.
The Wizards were beaten by 18 points in a wire-to-wire jump by the Knicks on Tuesday and played the first three quarters prone to revenge before falling in the final period.
After burning Washington by 37 points on Tuesday, Randle lost ten baskets in a row at one point in it, but still found a way to help at the end of the final period despite being upset.
Before the game, Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau was asked about the aspirants in the East, Miami, Chicago and Boston who were making big updates of the deadline while his team was doing nothing to talk about.
“I love our team,” Thibodeau said. “You are seeing what others are doing. This is your job. We did our best for ourselves. That’s what worries us. “
Two hours later, Thibodeau seemed more than frustrated as his club fell behind by 17 points in the first half. And then he was redeemed.