The New York Knicks were coming off arguably their most disappointing game of the season. Coming into last Saturday’s game as winners of four straight, New York went on the road to face one of the league’s bottom feeders, the Utah Jazz. Other than a 17-0 run in the third quarter, the Knicks looked lethargic. They lost 121-106 which improved Utah’s record to just 4-12.
Fast forward two days, and New York had arguably their most impressive outing thus far on the season. On the road against the Denver Nuggets, the Knicks easily took care of the 2023 NBA champions with a 145-118 victory. In the win, the Knicks tied a franchise record.
Knicks Tie Franchise Record In Dominant Victory Over Nuggets
Knicks 47 Assists Tie Franchise Single-Game Record
The Knicks were clicking on all cylinders on the offensive end on Monday night. While opponents have always said Denver is quite the challenging place to play due to the altitude, it didn’t bother New York in the least. Now 10-7, the Knicks have totaled their three-highest scoring outings in the last four games. Last night was a season-high, surpassing the previous season-high of 138 that New York scored last Wednesday against the Phoenix Suns.
The Knicks made 56 field goals on Monday. An incredible 45 of those 56 field goals were assisted on. Currently in their 79th season as a franchise, New York tied their franchise record with those 45 assists. According to ESPN, that equals the total they had on November 24, 1979.
That day, the Knicks defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers by the score of 133-113. New York assisted on 45 of their 58 made field goals. Their starting backcourt of Micheal Ray Richardson and Ray Williams both finished with double-digit assist totals, with 26 and 13 respectively.
Both Brunson And Anunoby Set New Career-Highs
Not only did the Knicks tie a franchise-high for total assists in a game, but a couple players set new career-highs in Monday’s performance. Star point guard Jalen Brunson orchestrated the offense in nearly flawless fashion, picking up 17 assists in the outing. That easily bests his previous career-high of 14 dimes on January 1, 2024 in a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Last night continued what has been a career-best season in dishing for the 28-year-old Brunson. He is now averaging 7.9 assists per game through 17 outings. Last season, he set his career-high as he averaged 6.7. Even with the increased assist total, Brunson is averaging slightly less turnovers than last season (2.3 in 2024-25, 2.4 in 2023-24).
With the crazy amount of assists put up by the Knicks on Monday, they also put up a boatload of points. They were led by OG Anunoby, who set a new career-high scoring 40. The 27-year-old shot 16-23 from the field, 5-7 from beyond the arc, and 3-3 from the foul line. His previous career-high of 36 came on November 1, 2021 while with the Toronto Raptors against his current team, the Knicks. Anunoby is now averaging 19.1 points, 2.3 more than his career-high of 16.8 in 2022-23 with Toronto.
At 10-7, the Knicks currently sit in fourth place in the Eastern Conference. Their next outing takes place on Wednesday on the road against the Dallas Mavericks. Their five-game road trip ends Friday in an NBA Cup contest against the Charlotte Hornets.
