ATLANTA — Jalen Brunson beat Trae Young at his own long-distance game and RJ Barrett provided ample support as the Knicks avoided an epic collapse in Friday’s 126-120 victory in Atlanta.
Up by seven with about 45 seconds left, the Knicks allowed the Hawks to come within one near dunk of tying the game because of consecutive turnovers.
But Atlanta’s Clint Capela couldn’t grip the lob from Young with 17 seconds left, Julius Randle hit a pair of clutch free throws and the Knicks escaped A-town with an important road victory.
For most of the contest, Young struggled offensively and displayed his usual olé defense.
Brunson countered a career-high with eight treys and finished with a game-high 31 points.
Barrett was an all-around force with 26 points in 34 minutes.
Randle again struggled with his shot but helped in other ways, namely as a distributor, and fell just one assist short of a triple-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds.
Unlike Wednesday’s loss to the Celtics, offense wasn’t a problem for the Knicks.
They had 69 points in the first half and led for much of the evening, hitting 53 percent of their shots overall and 50 percent of their 3-pointers.
The Knicks’ final 45 seconds were the sloppiest.
Young, meanwhile, rode the struggle bus while getting locked up by Quentin Grimes.
Young had 18 points on just 4-of-16 shooting.
Brunson, coming off a dud opener, was the superior point guard.
His success isn’t a surprise to Hawks coach Quin Snyder, who was powerless to stop the former Mavericks point guard in his 2022 playoffs with the Jazz.
Brunson took over that series with Luka Doncic injured, paving the way for his big payday with the Knicks. Snyder left the Jazz soon thereafter.
“Not in the slightest [surprised by Brunson’s ascension]. Beginning with when he was in college, just the command that he had over the game, his understanding is unique. Plays with his feet on the floor. the way that he changes speeds,” Snyder said. “That series, he was the best player on the floor when Luka was out and there were times when he was the best player on the floor when Luka was in. That’s just a credit to him. So it was very obvious the level that he was capable of playing and it has shown.”
It was also a redemptive performance from Donte DiVincenzo.
After going scoreless two days earlier in his debut, the backup guard nailed the first shot of his Knicks career in the first quarter and proceeded to cook.
He went 4-for-4 in the first half and finished with 16 points in 20 minutes.