0-3 by the Numbers: Where the Knicks' Points Went in Three Losses

Quick answer: The Knicks are 0-3 and have been outscored 324-305, just 19 points across three losses to Philly, Boston and Orlando. We've actually won the first halves (+7) and the paint (+16). The damage comes from three places: third quarters (-20), the three-point line (-24) and points off turnovers (-22). All of it is fixable, starting Tuesday against Detroit.

Key stats (three games, per the ESPN and NBA.com box scores)

• Scoring: Knicks 305, opponents 324. That's 101.7 points per game for us, 108.0 against.
• By quarter: First +10 (80-70), second -3 (79-82), third -20 (65-85), fourth -6 (81-87).
• Halves: First halves +7 (159-152), second halves -26 (146-172).
• Threes: Knicks 36-of-111 (32.4%), opponents 44-of-121 (36.4%). That's 108 points to 132.
• Paint: Knicks 126, opponents 110.
• Turnovers: 49 for us (16.3 a game) to 39 for them. Opponents scored 64 points off ours; we scored 42 off theirs.
• Offensive rebounds: Knicks 38, opponents 26.
• Free throws: Knicks 51-of-72 (70.8%), opponents 50-of-64 (78.1%).
• Brunson: 22.7 points a game on 25-of-64 (39.1%), 4-of-15 from three.
• Cat (Towns): 21.0 points and 12.0 rebounds a game on 23-of-37 (62.2%), with 12 turnovers.
• Mikal Bridges: 10 points on 5-of-23, 0-of-10 from three, -50 in 90 minutes.

My gut reaction

I've been staring at these box scores since Sunday night. We're not getting blown out. We're losing by six, four and nine. The team that won a title in June is still in there for about 30 minutes a night. Then it disappears.

That's frustrating, but it beats being outclassed.

The third quarter is the leak

We led at halftime in two of the three games (58-54 vs. Philly and 52-48 vs. Orlando) and trailed Boston by one. Put the three first halves together and we're +7.

Then the third quarter hits. Philly won it 29-18 and Boston won it 33-24. Orlando only tied it 23-23, then dropped 40 in the fourth. Add it up and we're -20 in third quarters alone, more than our entire 19-point deficit.

My verdict: this is about how we come out of the locker room. The starters play heavy minutes in that stretch, and right now the opponent is adjusting faster than we are.

Paint vs. threes: we've got one half of the recipe

You know my lens. You win by balancing the paint and the three-point line. Through three games we're +16 in the paint and +12 on the offensive glass. That's the inside half, and it's working.

The outside half isn't. We're 32.4% from deep, and opponents have made eight more threes on 10 more attempts. That's a 24-point gap from the arc, bigger than our whole deficit.

The split inside our own roster is wild. The starting five is 22-of-78 from three (28.2%). The bench is 14-of-33 (42.4%), led by Deuce McBride at 7-of-12 and Landry Shamet at 5-of-14. The bench guys are making shots. The starters have to get there.

Turnovers are the hidden tax

We're giving it away 16.3 times a game, and opponents have cashed in 64 points off those turnovers to our 42. That's another 22 points, and it hit hardest late against Orlando, when seven turnovers came in the fourth. Mike Brown told SNY that about "three-fourths of our turnovers were our mistakes rather than their [defensive] pressure." That's the good news, because unforced errors are the easiest thing to clean up.

Cat at the five: feed him more

Cat is shooting 62.2% from the field and averaging a double-double. He's taken 37 shots in three games, while Brunson has taken 64. I love Brunson. But when your five-out center is that efficient, the offense should be running through him more.

Cat does need to clean up his own mistakes. He has 12 turnovers and 11 fouls already. The five-out look is a weapon, but only if he's on the floor and holding onto the ball.

Mikal and OG: the plus-minus problem

I want Mikal and OG together on the wings all season. That's the pairing that won us a title. But the numbers are hard to ignore right now. Mikal is 0-for-10 from three and -50, and OG is -42 even while scoring 17.3 a game. Josh Hart is +8, Shamet is +17 and Jordan Clarkson is +12 in limited minutes.

Three games is a tiny sample, and plus-minus is noisy. Still, this is why I keep saying we need more size and shooting on the wings. It's not a reason to break up Mikal and OG. It is a reason to find Mikal some easy looks early, before this becomes a confidence thing.

The verdict

We're 19 points away from where we want to be, and the leaks are clear: the third quarter, threes from the starters and turnovers. The paint, the glass and the first halves say the foundation is still here.

Next up is the 3-0 Pistons at the Garden on Tuesday, Oct. 27 (8 PM ET / 7 PM CT, NBC per ESPN's schedule). For how Sunday slipped away, read the Morning After: https://knicks365.com/blog/knicks-magic-recap-wagner-fourth-quarter-0-3-start. For the Boston loss: https://knicks365.com/blog/knicks-celtics-recap-tatum-clutch-0-2-start. And for who's getting minutes: https://knicks365.com/blog/knicks-rotation-watch-minutes-through-two-games

Cover photo: Josh Hart. Photo: Erik Drost / CC BY 2.0 (cropped), via Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Josh_Hart_-_52977163784_(cropped).jpg (license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)