With all five of the New York Knicks starters dressed in street clothes, the Washington Wizards defeated a depleted team of Mike Brown's reserves 120-103 Monday night at Madison Square Garden.
Malcolm Brogdon, Jordan Clarkson and Guerschon Yabusele joined Miles McBride and 2024 first-round draft choice Pacome Dadiet to form the starting nucleus of the Knicks team.
Dadiet opened the game with the two 3-point field goals and would finish with eight points. He also led the Knicks in rebounding with six boards. Dadiet gave the Knicks an early three-point lead which would vanish. The Wizards were up by as many as 36 points in the second half before they took their feet off the gas.
Tyler Kolek led the Knicks with 20 points off the bench. Kolek added four rebounds and six assists as he continued his campaign to show he belongs on Brown's final roster. Clarkson had 12 points, while McBride and Yabusele both chimed in with 11 points.
It has long been rumored that either Kolek or Dadiet could be dealt to another team as it has been reported the Knicks are interested in keeping Brogdon and Landry Shamet, who also sat out Monday night.
Coach Brown went with a smaller lineup with his big frontcourt resting, so the Knicks were soundly trounced on the boards. They lost the rebound battle 58-46. The Knicks also committed 19 turnovers which resulted in 23 points for the Wizards.
One of the stories from the game was that the Wizards simply outran the Knicks. They outscored New York 19-5 on fast break points. By virtue of their domination on the boards, the Wizards outscored the Knicks 16-4 on second chance points.
The Wizards also rested some of their star players as Khris Middleton, CJ McCollum and Alex Sarr were all missing in action.
Sarr was resting his injured calf that he sustained in the EuroBasket tournament. McCollum and Middleton simply got veteran rest.
Wizards' backup center Marvin Bagley III led the Wizards with 18 points and 11 rebounds. He shot an incredible 87.5 percent from the field. Bagley also had three assists, two steals and one block on the evening.
Will Riley finished with 17 points for the Wizards on 63.6 percent shooting. He played 26 minutes and showed why he is considered one of the bigger steals from the 2025 NBA Draft.
The Knicks will conclude the preseason Friday night when they face the Charlotte Hornets at 7:30 ET from the Garden.