In their first game since the big Kristaps Porzingis trade, the Knicks fell to the Kyrie Irving-led Celtics 113-99 at The Garden on Friday night. >> Box score
Things to know about Friday's game
1) With Porzingis gone, Irving may be one of the potential free agents that fills his spot this offseason, and Knicks fans welcomed him with loud cheers when he was called during starting lineups. And Irving continued to hear cheers as he dropped a game-high 23 points on 9-for-20 from the field with 10 rebounds and six assists as well for a double-double.
2) Tim Hardaway Jr. and Courtney Lee were shipped away in the trade with the Mavs, and with Frank Ntilikina out for the second straight game, the Knicks' starting lineup wasn't the best to say the least. However, Damyean Dotson and Kevin Knox dropped 22 and 21 points respectively to lead the Knicks offense. Knox took the most shots with 21, hitting nine of them.
3) Enes Kanter saw a little more time off the bench compared to his nine minutes on Wednesday. In 13 minutes this time, he drained three buckets for six points while collecting seven rebounds.
4) The Knicks were expected to struggle even more, especially with Hardaway Jr. -- one of their better scorers -- off to Dallas. However, the team shot 45.3 percent from the field. However, THJ was missed beyond the arc with a team 29 percent shooting from three tonight.
5) A fresh face for the Knicks in Kadeem Allen got the start tonight at point guard, and he saw a solid 35 minutes. He shot 2-for-7 including one three and hit all four of his free throws for nine points.
Highlights
KAD3️⃣3️⃣M FOR THR3️⃣3️⃣ pic.twitter.com/HrXC8eDhbQ
- NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) February 2, 2019
Hit 'em with the left, @KevKnox 👀 pic.twitter.com/xmTwUkL3GE
- NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) February 2, 2019
That's 4️⃣ 👌s for @wholeteamDot 🎯 pic.twitter.com/83sVRPtma1
- NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) February 2, 2019
What's next
The Knicks stay at home and host the Grizzlies on Sunday at 1 p.m.