Jalen Brunson speaks after the New York Knicks collapse against the Atlanta Hawks.
The Knicks were up 12 entering the fourth quarter, and up eight with just over five minutes remaining.
Jalen Brunson and the Knicks' offense were humming all night, scoring 29+ points in each of the first three quarters, while the Hawks were held to less than 26 points in quarters one and three.
After taking a 100-92 lead, the Hawks ran off an 11-0 run to somehow take a 103-100 lead with 1:33 remaining.
Despite having chances in the final 90 seconds, the Knicks were stunned and couldn't pull it together.
Jalen Brunson Speaks
After the game, Brunson addressed what went wrong offensively in the fourth quarter.
"We were a little stagnant. Obviously, I can control what I can control; poor decision making on my part…couple possessions they played great defense and smacked the ball out of my hands. We gotta play better with the lead; that's twice in the 4th we've done that," he said.
Brunson had ten points on 3-8 shooting in the fourth quarter, but no assists.
As a team, the Knicks went 5-22 from the field in the fourth and 3-11 from three. They had just three team assists and two turnovers.
In game one, the Knicks were up 19 in the fourth, but loosened the reins and allowed the Hawks to make it more competitive in the final minutes than it truly was.
The Hawks Run
While the Knicks offense went cold, the defense couldn't get a stop.
The Atlanta run started with a Jonathan Kuminga layup, was followed by a Nikeil Alexander-Walker three, a Jalen Johnson layup, a CJ McCollum layup, and a McCollum floater.
The Hawks didn't miss a shot during that stretch, and their only miscue was a McCollum turnover, which was given right back thanks to an OG Anunoby turnover.
The Knicks would tie it on a Brunson three, but Brunson would miss his next shot that would've given the Knicks the lead. On the other end of the floor, McCollum hit a baseline fadeaway.
Brunson had another opportunity for the Knicks, but the ball was swiped from his hands by Alexander-Walker, leading to a dunk for the Hawks.
Despite everything, the Knicks still had a chance to win it after a three by Brunson and two missed free throws by McCollum, but Mikal Bridges left his jumper short as time expired.